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REPORT  OF  THE  COMMITTEE  OF 
-  FIFTEEN  ON  ELEMENTARY 
EDUCATION  4i  WITH  THE  REPORTS 
OF  THE  SUB-COMMITTEES:  ON 
THE  TRAINING  OF  TEACHERS;  ON 
THE  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES 
IN  ELEMENTARY  EDUCATION;  ON 
THE  ORGANIZATION  OF  CITY 
SCHOOL    SYSTEMS 


^ 


PUBLISHED  FOR  THE  NATIONAL  EDUCATIONAL 

ASSOCIATION     BY     THE     AMERICAN     BOOK 

COMPANY  *  NEW  YORK,  CINCINNATI,  CHICAGO 

M  D  CCC  XC  V 


Copyright,  1895,  by 
The  National  Educational  Association. 


PREFATORY   NOTE 

The  origin  and  preparation  of  the  Report  of  the  Commit- 
tee of  Fifteen  have  been  stated  by  its  chairman  in  the  Intro- 
duction to  the  report  on  pages  7-18. 

The  PRELIMINARY  REPORTS  of  the  three  sub-committees— 
On  the  Training  of  Teachers,  On  the  Correlation  of  Studies  in 
Elementary  Education,  On  the  Organization  of  City  School 
Systems — were  read  before  the  Department  of  Superintend- 
ence, at  Cleveland,  and  discussed.  These  preliminary  reports 
have  been  published  in  educational  periodicals. 

During  the  session  of  the  committee,  at  Cleveland,  instruc- 
tions were  given  for  the  completion  of  the  entire  report, 
including  important  extracts  from  letters  by  distinguished 
educators  to  the  sub-committees,  which  make  substantial  and 
valuable  additions  to  the  reports.  The  final  report,  thus 
completed,  was  placed  in  charge  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  for 
publication,  under  the  control  of  the  National  Educational 
Association,  that  it  may  be  obtained  in  a  permanent  form,  at 
a  nominal  cost,  as  the  official  Report  of  the  Committee  of 
Fifteen. 

After  correspondence  was  had  with  Hon.  William  T.  Har- 
ris, United  States  Commissioner  of  Education,  and  others,  it 
was  deemed  best  to  arrange  for  the  pubHcation  of  the  Report 
of  the  Committee  of  Fifteen,  as  a  companion  to  the  Report 
of  the  Committee  of  Ten,  and  thus  cover  the  entire  course  of 
instruction  from  the  primary  school  through  a  preparation  for 
college.  Favorable  arrangements  have  been  made  for  its 
publication  in  this  manner;  and,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Report 
of  the  Committee  of  Ten,  any  profit  which  may  be  derived 
from  the  sale  of  this  Report  of  the  Committee  of  Fifteen 
will  be  credited  to  the  ''  Emergency  Fund  "  of  the  National 
Educational  Association,  the  conditions  and  purposes  of 
which  fund  are  stated  in  the  resolution  adopted  when  it  was 

3 


4  PREFATORY   NOTE. 

established  ;  viz.,  "  Said  fund  shall  be  subject  to  expenditure 
by  the  Board  of  Trustees  in  accordance  with  votes  of  the 
Board  of  Directors  at  any  regularly  called  meeting;  and  it 
may  be  used  for  the  purposes  of  meeting  deficiencies  of 
income  of  the  Association,  and  for  such  additional  investiga- 
tions and  publications  as  may  be  determined  by  said  Board 
of  Directors." 

The  permanent  value  of  the  report,  and  its  convenience  for 
ready  reference,  are  greatly  enhanced  by  a  full  index. 

N.  A.  Calkins, 
Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of 

The  National  Educational  Association. 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Introduction 7 

Reports  of  Sub-Committef.s  on 

I.    The  Training  of  Teachers .  19 

II.    The  Correlation  of  Studies  in  Elementary  Education     ....  40 

III.    The  Organization  of  City  School  Systems         114 

Appendices  :   Opinions  submitted  to  Sub-Committees  on 

I.    The  Training  of  Teachers        135 

II,    The  Correlation  of  Studies  in  Elementary  Education     .     .     .     .157 
III.    The  Organization  of  City  School  Systems        198 

Index 227 


XrUIVERSITY 


5-6 


REPORT 


COMMITTEE    OF    FIFTEEN 


INTRODUCTION 

To  THE  Department  of  Superintendence 

OF  the  National  Educational  Association  : 

The  undersigned,  chairman  of  the  Committee  of  Fifteen, 
appointed  at  the  meeting  of  the  Department  of  Superintend- 
ence held  in  Boston,  Mass.,  in  February,  1893,  would  respect- 
fully report : 

On  February  22,  1893,  the  following  resolution  was 
adopted  by  the  Department  of  Superintendence,  on  motion 
of  Superintendent  Maxwell,  of  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.  : 

Resolved^  That  a  Committee  of  Ten  be  appointed  by  the  Com- 
mittee on  Nominations,  to  investigate  the  organization  of  school 
systems,  the  coordination  of  studies  in  primary  and  grammar 
schools,  and  the  training  of  teachers,  with  power  to  organize  sub- 
conferences  on  such  subdivisions  of  these  subjects  as  may  seem 
appropriate,  and  to  report  the  results  of  their  investigations  and 
deliberations  at  the  next  meeting  of  the  Department  of  Superin- 
tendence. 

Resolved^  That  the  officers  of  the  Department  of  Superintendence 
be,  and  hereby  are,  directed  to  make  application  to  the  Board  of 
Directors  of  the  National  Educational  Association  for  an  appro- 
priation of  twenty-five  hundred  dollars  to  defray  the  expenses  of 
the  Committee  of  Ten  and  of  the  conferences  which  that  com- 
mittee is  empowered  to  appoint. 

On  February  23  the  Committee  on  Nominations  ap- 
pointed the  following  Committee  of  Ten  : 

Superintendent  William  H.  Maxwell,  of  Brooklyn,  N.  Y., 

7 


8  REPORT   OF   THE   COMMITTEE  OF   FIFTEEN. 

chairman  ;  Dr.  William  T.  Harris,  United  States  Commis- 
sioner of  Education  ;  Superintendent  T.  M.  Balliet,  of 
Springfield,  Mass.  ;  Superintendent  N.  C.  Dougherty,  of 
Peoria,  111.  ;  Superintendent  W.  B.  Powell,  of  Washington, 
D.  C.  ;  Superintendent  H.  S.  Tarbell,  of  Providence,  R.  I.  ; 
Superintendent  L.  H.  Jones,  of  Indianapolis,  Ind.;  Superin- 
tendent J.  M.  Greenwood,  of  Kansas  City,  Mo.  ;  State  Super- 
intendent A.  B.  Poland,  of  New  Jersey ;  Superintendent 
Edward  Brooks,  of  Philadelphia. 

On  motion  of  Superintendent  Maxwell,  the  members  of 
the  Committee  on  Nominations  were  added  to  the  Com- 
mittee of  Ten,  so  that  the  committee  became  one  of  fifteen. 
The  names  thus  added  to  the  committee  were  the  following: 
President  Andrew  S.  Draper,  of  the  University  of  Illinois  ; 
Superintendent  E.  P.  Seaver,  of  Boston,  Mass. ;  Superinten- 
dent A.  G.  Lane,  of  Chicago,  111.  ;  Superintendent  Charles  B. 
Gilbert,  of  St.  Paul,  Minn.;  Superintendent  Oscar  H.  Cooper, 
of  Galveston,  Tex. 

The  application  for  an  appropriation  to  ^efray  the  neces- 
sary expenses  of  the  committee  was  presented  to  the  Board 
of  Directors  of  the  National  Educational  Association,  but  no 
action  was  taken  by  that  body  until  July,  1894,  during  the 
meeting  at  Asbury  Park,  N.  J.,  when  the  sum  of  one  thou- 
sand dollars  was  set  apart  for  the  purpose. 

In  the  mean  time,  however,  the  committee  had  not  been 
idle.  Individual  members  had  been  collecting  information 
and  exchanging  views  by  correspondence.  During  the  meet- 
ing of  the  Department  of  Superintendence  held  in  Rich- 
mond, Va.,  in  February,  1894,  the  committee  held  two  pro- 
tracted sessions.  At  these  sessions  the  plan  of  work  for  the 
ensuing  year  was  discussed  and  determined.  The  chairman 
was  authorized  to  divide  the  members  of  the  committee  into 
three  sub-committees — one  on  the  training  of  teachers,  one  on 
the  correlation  of  studies  in  elementary  education,  and  one 
on  the  organization  of  city  school  systems. 


INTRODUCTION.  9 

The  sub-committees  were  appointed  as  follows : 

The  Training  of  Teachers. — Horace  S.  Tarbell  (chairman), 
Edward  Brooks,  Thomas  M.  Balliet,  Newton  C.  D.ougherty, 
and  Oscar   H.  Cooper. 

The  Correlation  of  Studies  in  Elementary  Education. — Wil- 
liam T.  Harris  (chairman),  James  M.  Greenwood,  Charles  B. 
Gilbert,  Lewis  H.  Jones,  and  William  H.  Maxwell. 

The  Organization  of  City  School  Systems. — Andrew  S. 
Draper  (chairman),  Edwin  P.  Seaver,  Albert  G.  Lane,  Addi- 
son B.  Poland,  and  W\  B.  Powell. 

The  committee  next  adopted  the  following  lists  of  ques- 
tions, which  the  members  were  directed  to  submit  to  all 
persons  throughout  the  country  whose  opinions  might  be 
considered  as  of  value  : 

TRAINING  OF  TEACHERS 

1.  What  should  be  the  lowest  age  at  which  a  person  should  be 
permitted  to  undertake  a  course  of  professional  work  ? 

2.  What  should  be  the  requirements  for  scholarship  to  enter  on 
such  a  course  ? 

(a)   English — Grammar,  Historical  Grammar,  Rhetoric,  Literature. 

{V)    Mathematics — Arithmetic,  Algebra,  Geometry. 

(r)    Botany  and  Zoology. 

{d)  Drawing. 

{e)    Music. 

(/)  History. 

Kg)  Geography. 

{H)  Physics. 

(i)    Chemistry, 

(y)  Foreign  languages — P'rench,  German,  Latin,  Greek. 

(^)    Physiology  and  Hygiene. 

(/)    Mineralogy. 

3.  Should  scholarships  be  determined  by  an  examination,  or 
should  a  high-school  diploma  be  accepted  as  evidence  ?  If  the  lat- 
ter, should  a  four  years'  course  be  required  ? 

4.  What  should  be  the  duration  of  the  training-school  course  ? 

5.  What  proportion  of  this  time  should  be  devoted  to  studying 
principles  and  methods  of  education  ?  What  proportion,  to  the 
practice  of  teaching  ? 


10  REPORT   OF   THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN. 

6.  To  what  extent  should  psychology  be  studied,  and  in  what 
way  ? 

7.  Along  what  lines  should  the  observation  of  children  be  pur- 
sued ? 

8.  What  measurements  of  children  should  be  made,  and  what 
apparatus  should  be  required  for  the  purpose? 

9.  In  what  way  should  principles  of  education  be  derived  from 
psychology  and  allied  sciences  ? 

10.  How  far  and  in  what  way  should  the  history  of  education  be 
studied?  In  what  way  may  the  history  of  education  be  made  of 
practical  use  to  teachers  ? 

11.  In  what  way  should  the  training  in  teaching  the  various  sub- 
jects of  the  common-school  curriculum  be  pursued  ? 

{a)  By  writing  outlines  of  lessons  ? 

{b)  By  giving  lessons  to  fellow  pupil  teachers  ? 

{c)  By  the  study  of  books  or  periodicals  devoted  to  methods  of  teaching  ? 

{d)  By  lectures  ? 

12.  In  a  model  school,  should  there  be  a  model-teacher  placed 
over  each  class  ?  Or,  should  there  be  a  model-teacher  placed  over 
every  two  classes  ?  Or,  should  the  pupil-teachers  be  held  respon- 
sible for  the  teaching  of  all  classes,  under  the  direction  of  a  critic- 
teacher? 

13.  What  is  the  most  fruitful  plan  of  observing  the  work  of  model- 
teachers  ? 

14.  What  is  the  most  fruitful  plan  of  criticising  the  practice  work 
of  pupil-teachers  ? 

15.  Should  the  criticism  be  made  by  the  teachers  of  methodology, 
or  by  critic-teachers  appointed  specially  for  the  purpose,  or  by  the 
model-teachers  ? 

16.  Should  the  imparting  of  knowledge,  other  than  psychology, 
principles,  methods,  and  history  of  education,  form  any  part  of  the 
work  of  a  normal  or  training  school  ? 

17.  How  should  a  pupil-teacher's  efficiency  be  tested  in  a  train- 
ing school ? 

18.  On  what  grounds  should  the  diploma  of  a  training  school  be 
issued  ? 

CORRELATION   OF   STUDIES 

I.  Should  the  elementary  course  be  eight  years  and  the  secon- 
dary course  four  years,  as  at  present  ?  Or,  should  the  elementary 
course  be  six  years  and  the  secondary  course  six  years  ?    - 


INTRODUCTION.  1 1 

2.  Has  each  of  the  grammar  school  studies — language  (including 
reading,  spelling,  grammar,  composition),  mathematics  (arithmetic, 
algebra,  plane  geometry),  geography,  history,  natural  science  (bot- 
any, zoology,  mineralogy),  penmanship,  drawing,  etc.,  a  distinct 
pedagogical  value  ?     If  so,  what  is  it  ? 

3.  Should  other  subjects  than  tliose  enumerated  in  the  second 
question,  such  as  manual  training  (including  sloyd,  sewing,  and 
cooking),  physical  culture,  physics,  music,  physiology  (including  the 
effects  of  stimulants  and  narcotics),  Latin,  or  a  modern  language, 
be  taught  in  the  elementary  school  course  ?     If  so,  why  ? 

4.  Should  the  sequence  of  topics  be  determined  by  the  logical 
development  of  the  subject,  or  by  the  child's  power  to  apperceive 
new  ideas  ?  Or,  to  any  extent  by  the  evolutionary  steps  manifested 
by  the  race  ?  If  so,  by  the  evolution  of  the  race  to  which  the  child 
belongs,  or  that  of  the  human  race  ? 

5.  What  should  be  the  purpose  of  attempting  a  close  correlation 
of  studies  ? 

(a)    To  prevent  duplication,  eliminate  non-essentials,  and  save  time  and  effort  ? 
(d)    To  develop  the  apperceiving  power  of  the  mind  ? 
(r)    To  develop  character, — a  purely  ethical  purpose  ? 


6.  Is  it  possible  on  any  basis  to  correlate  or  unify  all  the  studies 
of  the  elementary  school  ? 

7.  If  not,  may  they  be  divided  into  two  or  more  groups,  those  of 
each  group  being  correlated  ? 

8.  Is  there  any  way  of  correlating  the  results  of  work  in  all  the 
groups  ? 

9.  What  should  be  the  length  of  recitation  periods  in  each  year 
of  the  elementary  school  course  ?  What  considerations  should 
determine  the  length  ? 

10.  In  what  year  of  the  course  should  each  of  the  subjects  men- 
tioned in  questions  2  and  3  be  introduced,  if  introduced  at  all  ? 

11.  In  making  a  programme,  should  time  be  assigned  for  each 
subject,  or  only  for  the  groups  of  subjects  suggested  in  question  7  ? 

12.  How  many  hours  a  week  for  how  many  years  should  be 
devoted  to  each  subject,  or  each  group  of  subjects  ? 

13.  What  topics  may  be  covered  in  each  subject,  or  each  group 
1    of  subjects  ? 

rw  14.  Should  any  subject,  or  group  of  subjects,  be  treated  differ- 
ently for  pupils  who  leave  school  at  twelve,  thirteen,  or  fourteen 
years  of  age,  and  for  those  who  are  going  to  a  high  school  ? 

\^  15.  Can  any  description  be  given  of  the  best  method  of  teaching 
each  subject,  or  group  of  subjects,  throughout  the  school  course  ? 

,'•,<.;.-       Tr> 

(TTK 


12  REPORT  OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN. 

1 6.  What  considerations  should  determine  the  point  at  which  the 
specialization  of  the  work  of  teachers  should  begin  ? 

17.  On  what  principle  should  the  promotion  of  pupils  from  grade 
to  grade  be  determined  ?    Who  should  make  the  determination  ? 

CITY   SCHOOL  SYSTEMS 

1.  Should  there  be  a  board  of  education,  or  a  commissioner  with 
an  advisory  council  ? 

2.  If  a  commissioner,  should  he  be  elected  by  the  people,  or 
appointed  by  the  mayor,  or  selected  in  some  other  way  ? 

3.  What  should  be  his  powers  and  duties  ? 

4.  If  a  board  of  education,  of  how  many  members  should  it  consist  ? 

5.  Should  the  members  be  elected  or  appointed  ?  From  the  city 
at  large  or  to  represent  districts  ? 

6.  Should  the  members  be  elected  in  equal  numbers  from  the 
two  great  political  parties,  or  can  any  other  device  be  suggested  to 
eliminate  politics  from  school  administration  ? 

7.  By  what  authority  should  the  superintendent  of  schools  be 
elected  or  appointed  ?  and  for  what  term  ? 

8.  What  should  be  the  qualifications  of  a  city  superintendent  of 
schools  ? 

9.  Should  the  city  superintendent  owe  his  appointment  directly 
or  indirectly  to  the  State  educational  authorities,  and  be  responsible 
to  them  rather  than  to  the  local  authorities  ? 

10.  In  whom  should  be  vested  the  authority  to  license  teachers  ? 
To  cancel  licenses  for  cause  ? 

11.  In  whom  should  be  vested  the  power  to  appoint  teachers? 
In  whom  the  power  to  discharge  teachers  ? 

12.  Supposing  teachers  appointed  to  a  school,  who  should  have 
the  power  to  assign  them  to  grades  or  classes  ? 

13.  Should  the  principle  of  competitive  examination  be  intro- 
duced in  determining  promotions  to  positions  of  greater  responsi- 
bility or  emolument  ? 

14.  How  should  the  duties  of  superintendents  on  the  one  hand 
and  of  principals  on  the  other,  in  the  supervision  of  methods  and  of 
teaching,  be  defined  ? 

15.  By  whom  should  the  course  of  study  be  made  ? 
.16.  By  whom  should  text-books  be  selected  ? 

17.  By  whom  should  promotions  be  made  ? 

18.  By  whom  should  disputes  between  parents  and  the  teaching 
force  be  settled  ? 

19.  By  whom  should  a  compulsory  education  law  be  enforced  ? 


INTRODUCTION.  1 3 

It  was  further  decided  that  all  papers  written  in  answer  to 
these  lists  of  questions  were  to  be  placed  in  the  hands  of  the  > 
chairmen  of  the  sub-committees  not  later  than  November  1/ 
1894,  and  that  the  chairmen  should  prepare  reports  to  be 
submitted  to  the  full  committee  at  a  meeting  to  be  held  in- 
December  of  that  year. 

The  next  meeting  of  the  committee  was  held  on  July  9,  "* 
1894,    at    Asbury    Park,    N.    J.,    during   the    session    of    the 
National    Educational    Association    at    that    place.       It    was  ' 
there  determined  that  each  of  the  sub-committee  chairmen 
should  present   the  report  of  his  sub-committee  to  the  De- 
partment   of  Superintendence    at    the    meeting  to    be    held  • 
in  Cleveland,    O.,    in    February,  ^1895.      Other   details  were* 
arranged,  and  progress  was  reported  in  the  matter  of  obtain- 
ing opinions  from   the  experts  invited  to  answer  the  ques- 
tions formulated  by  the  committee. 

On  the  loth  of  December,  1894,  the  committee  met^in 
Washington,  D.  C.  It  continued  in  session  four  days,  hold- 
ing three  sessions  each  day.  During  a  small  fraction  of  this 
time  the  sub-committees  met  separately  ;  but  for  the  most 
part  the  subject  matter  of  each  report  was  discussed  by  the 
full  committee.  All  the  members  were  present  except  Super- 
intendent Powell,  who  was  unfortunately  absent  through 
severe  illness. 

President  Draper  presented  a  preliminary  report  on  the 
organization  of  city  school  systems,  and  Superintendent 
Tarbell  one  on  the  training  of  teachers.  Superintendent  Tar- 
bell's  report  was  adopted  by  the  full  committee  without  a 
dissenting  voice.  President  Draper's  report  also  received 
the  unanimous  approval  of  the  committee,  except  in  so  far 
as  it  recommended  the  establishment  of  the  office  of  School 
Director.  Seven  votes  were  recorded  in  favor  of  that  recom- 
mendation. No  votes  were  recorded  against  it,  though 
several  members  refrained  from  voting.  Subsequently, 
when    the    report  was    submitted    in    its    final  shape,  eleven 


14  REPORT   OF  THE  COMMITTEE  OF  FIFTEEN. 

members  signified   their  approval  of  the   entire  report,  and 
signed  it. 

With  regard  to  the  correlation  of  studies,  important  dif- 
ferences of  opinion  were  developed  in  the  consideration  of 
the  various  propositions  submitted  by  Dr.  Harris  and  by 
other  members  of  the  committee.  About  two-thirds  of  the 
time  the  committee  was  in  session  was  devoted  to  the  dis- 
cussion of  these  propositions.  While  an  adequate  conception 
of  the  intensity  of  this  discussion  cannot  now  be  conveyed  to 
any  one  who  was  not  present,  a  brief  resume  of  the  leading 
propositions  presented  will  give  some  idea  of  its  scope. 

The  following  propositions  were  unanimously  adopted  by 
the  full  committee : 

\  ^  The  civilization  of  the  age — the  environment  into  which  the 
child  is  born — should  determine  the  selection  of  the  objects 
of  study,  to  the  end  that  the  child  may  gain  an  insight,  into 
the  world  in  which  he  lives,  and  a  command  over  its  resources 
such  as  is  obtained  by  a  helpful  cooperation  with  his  fellows. 
'^  »  Psychology  should  determine  the  selection  and  arrange- 
ment of  the  topics  within  each  branch,  so  as  to  afford  the 
best  exercise  of  the  faculties  of  the  mind,  and  to  secure  the 
unfolding  of  those  faculties  in  their  natural  order. 

3  ,  Language,  as  a  subject  of  study,  has  a  distinct  and  definite 
relation  to  the  introduction  of  the  child  into  the  civilization 
of  his  time,  and  has,  therefore,  a  distinct  pedagogical  value, 
forming  the  true  basis  of  correlating  the  elementary  studies. 
In  correlating  geography  and  history,  the  former  should  be 
subordinate  to  the  latter. 

Instruction  in  the  elements  of  physics  and  chemistry,  in  so 
far  as  they  are  to  be  taught  at  all  in  the  elementary  school, 
should  not  be  limited  to  the  higher  grades,  but  should  be 
given  in  all  grades  in  connection  with  topics  in  physiology 
and  physical  geography. 

<       Elementary  geography  should  not   be   taught  as  a  special 
study,  but  the  topics  usually  included  under  this  caption  in 


I 


li^ 


INTRODUCTION.  1 5 

the  course  of  study  should  be  incorporated  into  the  course 
of  form  and  nature  study. 

The  use  of  good  English,  including  the  correct  use  of 
technical  terms,  should  be  required  in  all  studies ;  all  use 
of  bad  English,  caused  by,  or  significant  of,  confusion  of 
thought,  should  be  corrected  by  securing  the  elucidation 
of  the  thought ;  the  child's  best  efforts  in  speech  should  be 
required  in  all  recitations,  oral  or  written ;  but  solecisms 
should  for  the  most  part  be  corrected  in  the  regular  lan- 
guage lessons. 

The  study  of  English  grammar  should  be  made  subordi- 
nate and  auxiliary  to  the  study  of  English  literature. 

Writing,  as  a  special  branch,  should  be  taught  only  through 
the  sixth  year  of  the  course. 

Manual  training  in  wood  and  metals  should  be  made  a 
part  of  the  course  for  boys  during  the  seventh  and  eighth 
years ;  and  sewing  and  cooking  should  be  taught  to  girls — 
the  former  in  the  fourth,  fifth,  and  sixth  years,  the  latter  in 
the   seventh  and  eighth  years. 

Music  should  be  taught  throughout  the  elementary  course, 
and  the  sight  reading  of  music  should  have  a  prominent 
place  in  the  study. 

With  regard  to  the  following  propositions,  serious  differ- 
ences of  opinion  arose : 

Algebra  should  take  the  place  of  arithmetic  in  the  eighth 
year  of  the  elementary  course.     Rejected. 

Algebra  (not  to  the  exclusion  of  arithmetic)  should  be 
taught  during  one-half  of  the  last  year  of  the  course. 
Adopted  by  a  majority. 

^  Latin  should  be  studied  during  the  eighth  year  instead  of 
(English  grammar;  and  English  grammar  should  be  studied 
during  the  sixth  and  seventh  years.     Adopted  by  a  majority. 

In  the  eighth  year,  an  option  should  be  given  between  Latin 
and  a  modern  language.     Rejected, 

United  States  history  should  be  taken  up  during  the  eighth 


1 6  REPORT  OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN. 

year,  and  should  be  studied  only  up  to  the  date  of  the  adop- 
tion of  the  Constitution.     Rejected. 

United  States  history  should  be  studied  for  one  and  a  half 
years.     Adopted  by  a  majority. 

The  Constitution  of  the  United  States  should  be  studied 
for  ten  weeks  during  the  last  year  of  the  course.  Adopted 
by  a  majority. 

If  the  community  is  at  one  on  the  course  of  study,  all 
pupils  should  take  the  same  branches  of  study,  without  any 
omission.     Adopted  by  a  majority. 

The  course  of  study  for  elementary  schools  should  admit 
optional  studies  on  educational  grounds  for  the  good  of  the 
pupil.     Rejected. 

Reading  should  be  both  silent  and  oral.  There  should  be 
at  least  four  lines  of  connected  reading,  embracing  literature, 
history,  geography,  and  nature  studies.  Furthermore,  prose 
and  poetry,  of  an  appropriate  character,  should  be  read  to  the 
classes  throughout  the  grades  in  which  pupils  are  too  young 
to  read  such  literature  themselves.     Adopted  by  a  majority. 

Concrete  geometry  should  be  taught  under  the  head  of 
drawing,  and  also  under  the  head  of  mensuration  in  arith- 
metic.    Rejected. 

During  an  eight-year  course  (beginning  with  the  sixth  year 
of  age)  the  following  subjects  should  be  required  from  all 
pupils  :  English,  mathematics.  United  States  history  and  Con- 
stitution, drawing,  and  music.  Not  more  than  one  of  the 
following  subjects  should  be  pursued,  in  addition  to  those 
enumerated  above  :  Latin,  a  modern  language,  natural  sci- 
ence, manual  training,  or  concrete  geometry.     Rejected. 

Not  more  than  sixty  minutes  of  outside  study  should  be 
required  of  any  elementary  school  pupil.  Adopted  by  a 
majority. 

The  propositions  stated  above  were  discussed  at  great 
length  ;  and  Dr.  Harris  was  requested,  in  drawing  up  his 
report,  to  give  expression  to  the  views  of  the  majority  of  the 


INTRODUCTION.  17 

committee  as  gathered  from  these  discussions,  to  discuss  edu- 
cational values,  to  elucidate  various  phases  of  correlation,  and 
to  arrange  a  tabular  view  of  the  elementary  course  of  study- 
showing  the  location  of  each  subject  and  the  time  to  be 
devoted  to   it. 

The  final  meeting  of  the  committee  was  held  in  Cleveland, 
O.,  on  February  18,  1895,  when  the  reports  of  the  sub-com- 
mittees were  adopted  by  the  Committee  of  Fifteen. 

With  regard  to  the  presentation  of  the  reports  to  the 
Department  of  Superintendence,  and  with  regard  to  its  pub- 
lication, the  committee,  having  no  publication  fund  at  its- 
disposal,  and  wishing  to  spread  the  report  before  the  public 
at  once,  at  its  Washington  meeting  adopted  the  following: 

Resolved^  That  the  reports  of  the  three  sub-committees  be  read 
by  their  respective  chairmen  before  the  Department  of  Superin-' 
tendence  at  Cleveland,  in  February,  1895,  and  published  in  the 
Educational  Review  for  March,  1895  ;  provided  that  the  publishers 
of  the  Review  agree  to  furnish  to  each  member  of  the  Committee 
of  Fifteen,  and  also  to  each  person  appointed  to  discuss  the  report 
before  the  Cleveland  meeting,  a  printed  copy  of  the  report  ;  and 
immediately  after  the  meeting  to  send  to  each  educational  journal 
desiring  it  such  a  printed  copy,  with  the  request  that  it  be  pub- 
lished in  as  nearly  complete  a  form  as  possible. 

The  terms  of  this  resolution  were  conveyed  to  the  editor  and 
publishers  of  the  Educational  Review,  and  were  accepted  by 
them.  The  reports  were  read  by  the  three  chairmen  of 
sub-committees  before  the  Department  of  Superintendence 
at  Cleveland  on  February  19,  20,  and  21,  1895.  The  reports 
were  printed  in  the  March  issue  of  the  Educational  Review. 
Printed  copies  were  furnished  to  the  members  of  the  Com- 
mittee of  Fifteen  and  to  the  gentlemen  appointed  to  dis- 
cuss the  report.  A  copy  was  sent  to  every  educational 
journal  desiring  it,  and  also  to  every  member  of  the  Depart- 
ment who  responded  to  the  public  invitation  to  furnish  his 
name  and  address  for  the  purpose. 


1 8  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN. 

As  soon  as  the  reports  were  presented  to  the  Depart- 
ment, they  became  the  property  of  the  National  Educational 
Association. 

The  following  resolution  was  adopted  by  the  Department 
of  Superintendence  on  February  21  : 

Resolved^  That  we  recognize  the  great  value  of  the  report  of  the 
Committee  of  Fifteen  in  setting  forth  standards,  defining  educa- 
tional values,  and  furnishing  broad  grounds  for  intelligent  deliber- 
ation and  discussion  in  the  future  ;  and  that  the  committee  be, 
and  hereby  are,  authorized  to  put  the  report  and  such  dissenting 
opinions  as  they  m.ay  see  fit  to  use  into  form  satisfactory  to  them- 
selves, and  to  print  the  same ;  and  that  the  committee  having  per- 
formed this  duty  be  discharged. 

Upon  the  same  subject  the  Committee  of  Fifteen,  at  its 
meeting  in  Washington,  on  December  11,  1894,  adopted  the 
following  resolution  : 

Resolved,  That  the  chairmen  of  the  sub-committees,  acting  in 
conjunction  with  the  chairman  of  the  Committee  of  Fifteen,  are 
hereby  authorized  to  publish  such  papers  as  are  deemed  necessary, 
as  appendices  to  the  general  report  of  the  Committee  of  Fifteen. 

It  is  in  accordance  with  these  two  resolutions  that  the 
present  edition  is  prepared.  In  addition  to  this  historical 
statement,  and  to  the  original  reports  of  the  three  sub-com- 
mittees, it  contains,  as  appendices,  such  papers  and  parts  of 
papers,  submitted  to  the  sub-committees,  as  were  selected  for 
publication. 

It  is  found  impossible  to  print  all  the  papers  submitted  to 
the  committee.  In  making  selections,  the  design  has  been, 
as  far  as  practicable,  to  eliminate  repetitions  and  to  preserve 
all  valuable  ideas. 

William  H.  Maxwell,  Chairman. 

Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  March  23,  1895. 


REPORT   OF   THE 

SUB-COMMITTEE   ON   THE   TRAINING   OF 
TEACHERS 

This  report  treats  of  the  training  of  elementary  and  secondary 
teachers,  considering  first  that  training  which  should  precede 
teaching  in  elementary  schools.  By  elementary  schools  are 
meant  the  primary  and  grammar  departments  of  graded 
schools,  and  ungraded  or  rural  schools.  5 

That  teachers  are  "  born,  not  made,"  has  been  so  fully  the 
world's  thought  until  the  present  century  that  a  study  of  sub- 
jects without  any  study  of  principles  or  methods  of  teaching 
has  been  deemed  quite  sufficient.  Modern  educational  thought 
and  modern  practice,  in  all  sections  where  excellent  schools  are  lo 
found,  confirm  the  belief  that  there  is  a  profound  philosophy  on 
which  educational  methods  are  based,  and  that  careful  study  of 
this  philosophy  and  its  application  under  expert  guidance  are 
essential  to  making  fit  the  man  born  to  teach. 

CONDITIONS  FOR  PROFESSIONAL  TRAINING — AGE  AND 
ATTAINMENTS 

It  is  a  widely  prevalent  doctrine,  to  which  the  customs  of  15 
our  best  schools  conform,  that  teachers  of  elementary  schools 
should  have  a  secondary  or  high-school  education,  and  that 
teachers  of  high  schools  should  have  a  collegiate  education. 
Your  committee  believe  that  these  are  the  minimum  acquire- 
ments that  can  generally  be  accepted,  that  the  scholarship,  cul-  20 
ture,  and  power  gained  by  four  years  of  study  in  advance  of 

19 


20  REPORT   OF   THE   COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN 

the  pupils  are  not  too  much  to  be  rightfully  demanded,  and 
that  as  a  rule  no  one  ought  to  become  a  teacher  who  has  not 
the  age  and  attainments  presupposed  in  the  possessor  of  a  high- 
school  diploma.  There  are  differences  in  high  schools,  it  is 
5  true,  and  a  high  school  diploma  is  not  a  fixed  standard  of 
attainment ;  but  in  these  United  States  it  is  one  of  the  most 
definite  and  uniform  standards  that  we  possess,  and  varies  less 
than  college  degrees  vary  or  than  elementary  schools  and  local 
standards  of  culture  vary. 

lo  It  is  of  course  implied  in  the  foregoing  remarks  that  the  high 
school  from  which  the  candidate  comes  is  known  to  be  a  repu- 
table school,  and  that  its  diploma  is  proof  of  the  completion  of 
a  good  four-years*  course  in  a  creditable  manner.  If  these  con- 
ditions do  not  exist,  careful  examination  is  the  only  recourse. 

15  If  this  condition,  high-school  graduation  or  proof  by  exam- 
ination of  equivalent  scholarship,  be  accepted,  the  questions  of 
the  age  and  attainment  to  be  reached  before  entering  upon 
professional  study  and  training  are  already  settled.  But  if  a 
more  definite  statement  be  desired,  then  it  may  be  said  that 

20  the  candidate  for  admission  to  a  normal  or  training  school 
should  be  eighteen  years  of  age  and  should  have  studied 
English,  mathematics,  and  science  to  the  extent  usually  pur- 
sued in  high  schools,  should  be  able  to  write  readily,  correctly, 
and  methodically  upon  topics  within  the  teacher's  necessary 

25  range  of  thought  and  conversation,  and  should  have  studied, 
for  two  or  more  years,  at  least  one  language  beside  English. 
Skill  in  music  and  drawing  is  desirable,  particularly  ability  to 
sketch  readily  and  effectively. 

TRAINING   SCHOOLS 

The  training  of  teachers  may  be  done  in  normal  schools, 
30  normal  classes  in  academies  and  high  schools,  and  in  city  train- 
ing schools.  To  all  these  the  general  term  "  training  schools" 
will  be  applied.  Those  instructed  in  these  schools  will  be 
called  pupils  while  engaged  in  professional  study,  and  pupil- 
teachers  or  teachers-in-training  while  in  practice-teaching  pre- 
35  paratory  to  graduation.    Teachers  whose  work  is  to  be  observed 


ON  TRAINING  OF  TEACHERS.  21 

by  pupil-teachers  will  be  called  model-teachers  ;  teachers  in 
charge  of  pupil-teachers  during  their  practice  work  will  be 
called  critic-teachers.  In  some  institutions  model-teachers 
and  critic-teachers  are  the  same  persons.  The  studies  usu- 
ally pursued  in  academies  and  high  schools  will  be  termed  5 
academic,  and  those  post-academic  studies  to  be  pursued  be- 
fore or  during  practice-teaching  as  a  preparation  therefor  will 
be  termed  orofessional. 

ACADEMIC   STUDIES 

Whether  academic  studies  have  any  legitimate  place  in  a 
normal  or  training  school  is  a  question  much  debated.  It  can- 10 
not  be  supposed  that  your  committee  can  settle  in  a  paragraph 
a  question  upon  which  many  essays  have  been  written,  many 
speeches  delivered,  and  over  which  much  controversy  has 
been  waged. 

If  training  schools  are  to  be  distinguished  from  other  sec- 15 
ondary  schools  they  must  do  a  work  not  done  in  other  schools. 
So  far  as  they  teach  common  branches  of  study  they  are  doing 
what  other  schools  are  doing,  and  have  small  excuse  for  ex- 
istence ;  but  it  may  be  granted  that  methods  can  practically  be 
taught  only  as  to  subjects,  that  the  study  done  in  professional  20 
schools  may  so  treat  of  the  subjects  of  study,  not  as  objects 
to  be  acquired,  but  as  objects  to  be  presented,  that  their  treat- 
ment shall  be  wholly  professional. 

One  who  is  to  teach  a  subject  needs  to  know  it  as  a  whole 
made  up  of  related  and  subordinate  parts,  and  hence  must  25 
study  it  by  a  method  that  will  give  this  knowledge.  It  is  not 
necessary  to  press  the  argument  that  many  pupils  enter  normal 
and  training  schools  with  such  sHght  preparation  as  to  require 
instruction  in  academic  subjects.  The  college  with  a  prepara- 
tory department  is,  as  a  rule,  an  institution  of  distinctly  lower  30 
grade  than  one  without  such  a  department.  Academic  work 
in  normal  schools  that  is  of  the  nature  of  preparation  for 
professional  work,  lowers  the  standard  and  perhaps  the  useful- 
ness of  such  a  school ;  but  academic  work  done  as  a  means  of 
illustrating  or  enforcing  professional  truth  has  its  place  in  a  35 


22  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE    OF   FIFTEEN 

professional  school  as  in  effect  a  part  of  the  professional  work. 
Professional  study  differs  widely  from  academic  study.  In 
the  one,  a  science  is  studied  in  its  relation  to  the  studying 
mind  ;  in  the  other,  in  reference  to  its  principles  and  applica- 
5  tions.  The  aim  of  one  kind  of  study  is  power  to  apply  ;  of  the 
other,  power  to  present.  The  tendency  of  the  one  is  to  bring 
the  learner  into  sympathy  with  the  natural  world,  of  the  other 
with  the  child  world.  How  much  broader  becomes  the  teacher 
who  takes  both  the  academic  and  the  professional  view!     He 

lowho  learns  that  he  may  know  and  he  who  learns  that  he  may 
teach  are  standing  in  quite  different  mental  attitudes.  One 
works  for  knowledge  of  subject-matter;  the  other  that  his 
knowledge  may  have  due  organization,  that  he  may  bring  to 
consciousness  the  apperceiving  ideas  by  means  of  which  matter 

15  and  method  may  be  suitably  conjoined. 

How  to  study  is  knowledge  indispensable  to  knowing  how 
to  teach.  The  method  of  teaching  can  best  be  illustrated  by 
teaching.  The  attitude  of  a  pupil  in  a  training  school  must 
be  that  of  a  learner  whose  mental  stores  are  expanding,  who 

20  faces  the  great  world  of  knowledge  with  the  purpose  to  survey 
a  portion  of  it.  If  we  insist  upon  a  sufficient  preparation  for 
admission,  the  question  of  what  studies  to  pursue  and  espe- 
cially the  controversy  between  professional  and  academic  work 
will  be  mainly  settled. 

PROFESSIONAL  WORK 

25  Professional  training  comprises  two  parts  :  {a)  The  science 
of  teaching,  and  {b)  the  art  of  teaching. 

In  the  science  of  teaching  diVQ  included:     (i)  Psychology  as 

a  basis  for  principles  and  methods ;    (2)  Methodology  as  a 

guide  to  instruction  ;  (3)  School  economy,  which  adjusts  the 

30 conditions  of  work;  and  (4)  History  of  education,  which  gives 

breadth  of  view. 

The  art  of  teaching  is  best  gained:  (i)  by  observation  of 
good  teaching ;  (2)  by  practice-teaching  under  criticism. 

RELATIVE  TIME 

The  existence  and  importance  of  each  of  these  elements  in 


ON  TRAINING   OF  TEACHERS.  23 

the  training  of  tea:hers  are  generally  acknowledged.  Their 
order  and  proportionate  treatment  give  rise  to  differences  of 
opinion.  Some  would  omit  the  practice  work  entirely,  launch- 
ing the  young  teacher  upon  independent  work  directly  from 
her  pupilage  in  theory.  Others,  and  much  the  greater  number,  5 
advise  some  preparation  in  the  form  of  guided  experience  be- 
fore the  training  be  considered  complete.  These  vary  greatly 
in  their  estimate  of  the  proportionate  time  to  be  given  to 
practice  during  training.  The  answers  to  the  question,  **  What 
proportion?"  which  your  committee  has  received,  range  from  10 
one-sixteenth  to  two-thirds  as  the  proportion  of  time  to  be 
given  to  practice.  The  greater  number,  however,  advocate  a 
division  of  time  about  equal  between  theory  and  practice. 

The  normal  schools  incline  to  the  smallest  proportion  for 
practice-teaching,  the  city  training-schools  to  the  largest.     It  15 
should  be  borne  in  mind,  however,  that  city  training-schools 
are  a  close  continuation,  usually,  of  high  schools,  and  that  the 
high-school  courses  give  a  more  uniform  and  probably  a  more 
adequate  preparation  than  the  students  entering  normal  schools 
have  usually  had.    Their  facilities  for  practice-teaching  are  much  20 
greater  than  normal  schools  can  secure,  and  for  this  reason  also 
practice  is  made  relatively  more  important.     As  to  the  relative 
merits  of  city  training-schools  and  normal  schools,  your  com- 
mittee does  not  desire  to  express  an  opinion ;  the  conditions  of 
education  demand  the  existence  of  both,  and  both  are  necessities  25 
of  educational  advancement.     It  is  important  to  add,  however, 
that  in  the  judgment  of  your  committee  not  less  than  half  of 
the  time  spent  under  training  by  the  apprentice-teacher  should 
be  given  to  observation  "and  practice,  and  that  this  practice  in 
its  conditions  should  be  as  similar  as  possible  to  the  work  she  30 
will  later  be  required  to  do  independently. 

SCIENCE   OF   TEACHING — PSYCHOLOGY 

The  laws  of  apperception  teach  that  one  is  ready  to  appre- 
hend new  truth  most  readily  when  he  has  already  established 
a  considerable  and  well-arranged  body  of  ideas  thereon. 

Suggestion,  observation,  and  reflection  are  each  most  fruit- 35 


24  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN 

fill  when  a  foundation  of  antecedent  knowledge  has  been  pro- 
vided. Hence  your  committee  recommends  that  early  in  their 
course  of  study  teachers  in  training  assume  as  true  the  well- 
known  facts  of  psychology  and  the  essential  principles  of 
5  education,  and  make  their  later  study  and  practice  in  the  light 
of  these  principles.  These  principles  thus  become  the  norm 
of  educational  thought,  and  their  truth  is  continually  demon- 
strated by  subsequent  experience.  From  this  time  theory 
and    practice    should    proceed   together   in   mutual   aid   and 

lo  support. 

Most  fundamental  and  important  of  the  professional  studies 
which  ought  to  be  pursued  by  one  intending  to  teach  is  psy- 
chology. This  study  should  be  pursued  at  two  periods  of  the 
training-school   course,  the   beginning  and  the   end,  and   its 

15  principles  should  be  appealed  to  daily  when  not  formally 
studied.  The  method  of  study  should  be  both  deductive  and 
inductive.  The  terminology  should  be  early  learned  from 
a  suitable  text-book,  and  significance  given  to  the  terms  by 
introspection,  observation,  and  analysis.     Power  of  introspec- 

2otion  should  be  gained,  guidance  in  observation  should  be 
given,  and  confirmation  of  psychological  principles  should  be 
sought  on  every  hand.  The  habit  of  thinking  analytically  and 
psychologically  should  be  formed  by  every  teacher.  At  the 
close  of  the  course  a  more  profound  and   more  completely 

25  inductive  study  of  physiological  psychology  should  be  made. 
In  this  way,  a  tendency  to  investigate  should  be  encouraged  or 
created. 

STUDY  OF  CHILDREN 

Modern  educational  thought  emphasizes  the  opinion  that 
the  child,  not  the  subject  of  study,  is  the  guide  to  the  teacher's 

30 efforts.  To  know  the  child  is  of  paramount  importance.  How 
to  know  the  child  must  be  an  important  item  of  instruction  to 
the  teacher  in  training.  The  child  must  be  studied  as  to  his 
physical,  mental,  and  moral  condition.  Is  he  in  good  health  ? 
Are  his  senses  of  sight  and  hearing  normal,  or  in  what  degree 

35  abnormal  ?    What  is  his  temperament  ?    Which  of  his  faculties 


ON  TRAINING   OF  TEACHERS.  2$ 

seem  weak  or  dormant?  Is  he  eye-minded  or  ear-minded? 
What  are  his  powers  of  attention  ?  What  are  his  likes  and 
dishkes?  How  far  is  his  moral  nature  developed,  and  what 
are  its  tendencies?  By  what  tests  can  the  degree  of  difference 
between  bright  and  dull  children  be  estimated?  5 

To  study  effectively  and  observingly  these  and  similar  ques- 
tions respecting  children,  is  a  high  art.  No  common-sense 
power  of  discerning  human  nature  is  sufficient ;  though 
common  sense  and  sympathy  go  a  long  way  in  such  study. 
Weighing,  measuring,  elaborate  investigation  requiring  appa-  lo 
ratus  and  laboratory  methods,  are  for  experts,  not  teachers 
in  training.  Above  all,  it  must  ever  be  remembered  that  the 
child  is  to  be  studied  as  a  personality  and  not  as  an  object  to 
be  weighed  or  analyzed. 

METHODOLOGY 

A  part  of  the  work  under  this  head  must  be  a  study  of  the  15 
mental  and  moral  effects  of  different  methods  of  teaching  and 
examination,  the  relative  value  of  individual  and  class  instruc- 
tion at  different  periods  of  school  life  and  in  the  study  of  dif- 
ferent branches.     The  art  of  questioning  is  to  be  studied  in  its 
foundation   principles   and   by   the   illustration   of    the    best  20 
examples.     Some   review   of   the   branches  which   are  to  be 
taught  may  be  made,  making  the  teacher's  knowledge  of  them 
ready  and  distinct  as  to  the  relations  of  the  several  parts  of  the 
subject  to  one  another  and  of  the  whole  to  kindred  subjects. 
These  and  many  such  subjects  should  be  discussed  in  the  class  25 
in  pedagogy,  investigation  should  be  begun,  and  the  lines  on 
which  it  can  be  followed  should  be  distinctly  laid  down. 

The  laws  of  psychology,  or  the  capabilities  and  methods  of 
mind-activity,  are  themselves  the  fundamental  laws  of  teach- 
ing, which  is  the  act  of  exciting  normal  and  profitable  mind- 30 
action.  Beyond  these  fundamental  laws,  the  principles  of  edu- 
cation are  to  be  derived  inductively.  These  inductions  when 
brought  to  test  will  be  found  to  be  rational  inferences  from 
psychological  laws  and  thus  founded  upon  and  explained  by 
them.  2S 


26  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN 

SCHOOL  ECONOMY 

School  economy,  though  a  factor  of  great  importance  in  the 
teacher's  training,  can  be  best  studied  by  the  teacher  of  some 
maturity  and  experience,  and  is  of  more  value  in  the  equipment 
of  secondary  than  of  elementary  teachers.  Only  its  outlines 
5  and  fundamental  principles  should  be  studied  in  the  ordinary 
training-school. 

HISTORY  OF  EDUCATION 

Breadth  of  mind  consists  in  the  power  to  view  facts  and 
opinions  from  the  standpoints  of  others.  It  is  this  truth  which 
makes  the  study  of  history  in  a  full,  appreciative  way  so  iriflu- 

loential  in  giving  mental  breadth.  This  general  advantage  the 
history  of  education  has  in  still  larger  degree,  because  our  in- 
terest in  the  views  and  experiences  of  those  engaged  like  us  in 
training  the  young,  enables  us  to  enter  more  fully  into  their 
thoughts  and  purposes  than  we  could  into  those  of  the  warrior 

15  or  ruler.  From  the  efforts  of  the  man  we  imagine  his  surround- 
ings, v/hich  we  contrast  with  our  own.  To  the  abstract  element 
of  theoretical  truth  is  added  the  warm  human  interest  we  feel 
in  the  hero,  the  generous  partisan  of  truth.  The  history  of 
education  is  particularly  full  of  examples  of  noble  purpose,  ad- 

2ovanced  thought,  and  moral  heroism.  It  is  inspiring  to  fill  our 
minds  with  these  human  ideals.  We  read  in  the  success  of  the 
unpractical  Pestalozzi  the  award  made  to  self-sacrifice,  sym- 
pathy, and  enthusiasm  expended  in  giving  application  to  a  vital 
truth. 

25  But  with  enthusiasm  for  ideals  history  gives  us  caution, 
warns  us  against  the  moving  of  the  pendulum,  and  gives  us 
points  of  departure  from  which  to  measure  progress.  It  gives 
us  courage  to  attack  difficult  problems.  It  shows  which  the 
abiding  problems  are— those  that  can  be  solved  only  by  wait- 

3oing,  and  not  tossed  aside  by  a  supreme  effort.  It  shows  us  the 
progress  of  the  race,  the  changing  ideals  of  the  perfect  man, 
and  the  means  by  which  men  have  sought  to  realize  these 
ideals.  We  can  from  its  study  better  answer  the  question. 
What  is  education,  what  may  it  accomplish,  and  how  may  its 


ON   TRAINING   OF  TEACHERS. 

ideals  be  realized  ?  It  gives  the  evolution  of  the  present  and 
explains  anomalies  in  our  work.  And  yet  the  history  of  edu- 
cation is  not  a  subject  to  be  treated  extensively  in  a  training 
school.  All  but  the  outlines  may  better  be  reserved  for  later 
professional  reading.  $' 

TRAINING  IN  TEACHING 

Training  to  teach  requires  (i)  schools  for  observation,  and 
(2)  schools  for  practice. 

Of  necessity,  these  schools  must  be  separate  in  purpose  and 
in  organization.  A  practice  school  cannot  be  a  model  school. 
The  pupil-teachers  should  have  the  opportunity  to  observe  the  10 
best  models  of  the  teaching  art ;  and  the  manner,  methods,  and 
devices  of  the  model-teacher  should  be  noted,  discussed,  and 
referred  to  the  foundation  principles  on  which  they  rest. 
Allowable  modifications  of  this  observed  work  may  be  sug- 
gested by  the  pupil-teacher  and  approved  by  the  teacher  in  15 
charge. 

There  should  be  selected  certain  of  the  best  teachers  in  reg- 
ular school  work  whom  the  pupil-teachers  may  be  sent  to 
observe.  The  pupil-teachers  should  take  no  part  in  the  school 
work  nor  cause  any  change  therein.  They  should,  however,  20 
be  told  in  advance  by  the  teacher  what  purpose  she  seeks  to 
accomplish.  This  excites  expectation  and  brings  into  con- 
sciousness the  apperceiving  ideas  by  which  the  suggestions  of 
the  exercise,  as  they  develop,  may  be  seized  and  assimilated. 

At  first  these  visits  should  be  made  in  company  with  their  25 
teacher  of  methods,  and  the  work  of  a  single  class  in  one  sub- 
ject should  be  first  observed.  After  such  visits  the  teacher  of 
methods  in  the  given  subject  should  discuss  with  the  pupil- 
teachers  the  work  observed.  The  pupil-teachers  should  first 
describe  the  work  they  have  seen  and  specify  the  excellences  30 
noted,  and  tell  why  these  things  are  commendable  and  upon 
what  laws  of  teaching  they  are  based.  Next  the  pupil-teachers 
should  question  the  teacher  of  methods  as  to  the  cause,  pur- 
pose, or  influence  of  things  noted,  and  matters  of  doubtful 
propriety — if   there   be   such — should   be   considered.      Then  35 


28  REPORT   OF   THE   COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN 

the  teacher  in  turn  should  question  her  pupil-teachers  as  to 
matters  that  seem  to  have  escaped  their  notice,  as  to  the 
motive  of  the  model-teacher,  as  to  the  reason  for  the  order  of 
treatment,  or  form  of  question,  wherein  lay  the  merit  of  her 
5  method,  the  secret  of  her  power.  When  pupil-teachers  have 
made  such  observations  several  times,  with  several  teachers  and 
in  several  subjects,  the  broader  investigation  may  be  made  as  to 
the  organization  of  one  of  the  model  rooms,  its  daily  programme 
of  recitations  and  of  study,  the  methods  of  discipline,  the  rela- 

lotions  between  pupils  and  teacher,  the  "school  spirit,"  the 
school  movements,  and  class  progress.  This  work  should  be 
done  before  teaching  groups  or  classes  of  pupils  is  attempted, 
and  should  form  an  occasional  exercise  during  the  period  of 
practice-teaching  as  a  matter  of  relief  and  inspiration.     If  an 

15  artist  requires  the  suggestive  help  of  a  good  example  that  stirs 
his  own  originality,  why  should  not  a  teacher  ? 

THE    PRACTICE-SCHOOL 

During  the  course  in  methodology  certain  steps  closely  pre- 
paratory to  practice-teaching  may  be  taken,  i.  The  pupil- 
teacher  may  analyze  the  topic  to  be  taught,  noting  essentials 

20  and  incidentals,  seeking  the  connections  of  the  subject  with 
the  mental  possessions  of  the  pupils  to  be  considered  and  the 
sequences  from  these  points  of  contact  to  the  knowledge  to  be 
gained  under  instruction.  2.  Next,  plans  of  lessons  may  be 
prepared  and  series  of  questions  for  teaching  the  given  sub- 

25Ject.  3.  Giving  lessons  to  fellow  pupil-teachers  leads  to 
familiarity  with  the  mechanism  of  class  work,  such  as  calling, 
directing,  and  dismissing  classes,  gives  the  beginner  ease  and 
self-confidence,  leads  to  careful  preparation  of  lessons,  gives: 
skill  in  asking  questions  and  in  the  use  of  apparatus. 

30  The  practice-teaching  should  be  in  another  school,  prefera- 
bly in  a  different  building,  and  should  commence  with  group- 
teaching  in  a  recitation  room  apart  from  the  schoolroom. 
Actual  teaching  of  small  groups  of  children  gives  opportunity 
for  the  study  of  the  child-mind  in  its  efforts  at  reception  and 

35  assimilation  of  new  ideas,  and  shows  the  modifications  in  lesson 


/ 


ON   TRAINING   OF   TEACHERS.  29 

plans  that  must  be  made  to  adapt  the  subject  matter  to  the 
child's  tastes  and  activities.  But  the  independent  charge  for 
a  considerable  time  of  a  schoolroom  with  a  full  quota  of 
pupils,  the  pupil-teacher  and  the  children  being  much  of- the 
time  the  sole  occupants  of  the  room — in  short,  the  realization  5 
of  ordinary  school  conditions,  with  the  opportunity  to  go  for 
advice  to  a  friendly  critic,  is  the  most  valuable  practice ;  and 
no  practice  short  of  this  can  be  considered  of  great  value 
except  as  preparation  for  this  chief  form  of  preparatory 
practice.  All  this  work  should  have  its  due  proportion  only,  10 
or  evil  may  result.  For  example,  lesson  plans  tend  to  formal- 
ism, to  self-conceit,  to  work  in  few  and  narrow  lines,  to  study 
of  subjects  rather  than  of  pupils ;  lessons  to  fellow-pupils 
make  one  self-conscious,  hinder  the  growth  of  enthusiasm  in 
work,  and  are  entirely  barren  if  carried  beyond  a  very  few  15 
exercises;  teaching  groups  of  children  for  considerable  time 

unfits   the   teacher  for  the  double  burden   of  discipline^^^ud 

instruction;  to  bear  both  of  which  simultaneously  and  easily  is 
the  teacher's  greatest  difficulty  and  most  essential  power. 

A  critic-teacher  should  be  appointed   to  the  oversight  of  20 
two  such  pupil-teachers,  each  in  charge  of  a  schoolroom.     The 
critic  may  also  supervise  one  or  more  teachers  practicing  for 
brief  periods  daily  with  groups  of  children. 

The   pupil-teachers  are  now  to  emphasize  practice  rather 
than  theory,  to  work  under  the  direction  of  one  who  regards  25 
the  interests  of  the  children  quite  as  much  as  those  of  the 
teacher-in-training.      The  critic  must  admit  the  principles  of 
education   and   general   methods   taught   by   the    teacher   of 
methodology,  but  she  may  have  her  own  devices  and    even 
special  methods  that  need  not  be  those  of  the   teacher  of  30 
methodology.     No  harm  will  come  to  the  teachers-in-training 
if  they  learn  that  principles  must  be  assented  to  by  all,  but 
that  methods  may  bear  the  stamp  of  the  personality  of  the 
teacher ;  that  all  things  must  be  considered  from  the  point  of 
view  of  their  effect  upon  the  pupils ;  the  critic  maintaining  the  35 
claims  of  the  children,  the  teacher  of  methods  conforming  to 
the  laws  of  mind  and  the  science  of  the  subjects  taught.     The 


30  REPORT   OF   THE   COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN 

critics  must  teach  for  their  pupil-teachers  and  show  in  action 
the  justness  of  their  suggestions.  In  this  sense  they  are  model- 
teachers  as  well  as  critics. 

The  critic  should  at  the  close  of  school  meet  her  pupil- 
5  teachers  for  a  report  of  their  experiences  through  the  day : 
What  they  have  attempted,  how  they  have  tried  to  do  it,  why 
they  did  so,  and  what  success  they  gained.  Advice  as  to 
overcoming  difficulties,  encouragement  under  trial,  caution  if 
need  be,  help  for  the  work  of  to-morrow,  occupy  the  hour, 
lo  Above  all,  the  critic  should  be  a  true  friend,  a  womanly 
and  cultivated  woman,  and  an  inspiring  companion,  whose; 
presence  is  helpful  to  work  and  improving  to  personality. 

LENGTH  OF  TRAINING-SCHOOL  COURSE 

There  are  three  elements  which  determine  the  time  to  be 
spent  in  a  training  school — the  time  given  to  academic  studies, 

15  the  time  given  to  professional  studies,  and  the  time  given  to 
practice.  The  sum  of  these  periods  will  be  the  time  required 
for  the  training  course.  Taking  these  in  the  inverse  order,  let 
us  consider  how  much  time  is  required  for  practice  work  with 
pupils.     The  time  given  to  lesson  outlines  and  practice  with 

20  fellow  pupil-teachers  may  be  considered  a  part  of  the  profes- 
sional study  rather  than  of  practice-teaching.  The  period  of 
practice  with  pupils  must  not  be  too  short,  whether  we  con- 
sider the  interests  of  the  pupils  or  of  the  teachers-in-training. 
An  effort  is  usually  made  to  counteract  the  effect  upon  the 

25  children  of  a  succession  of  crude  efforts  of  teachers  beginning 
practice  by  strengthening  the  teaching  and  supervision  through 
the  employment  of  a  considerable  number  of  model  and  super- 
visory teachers,  and  by  dividing  the  pupils  into  small  groups 
so  that  much  individual  work  can  be  done.     These  arrange- 

30  ments,  while  useful  for  their  purpose,  destroy  to  a  considerable 
degree  the  usual  conditions  under  which  school  work  is  to  be 
done  and  tend  to  render  the  teachers-in-training  formal  and 
imitative. 

The  practice  room  should  be,  as  far  as  may  be,  the  ordinary 

35  school,  with  the  difficulties  and  responsibilities  that  will  be  met 


ON  TRAINING  OF  TEACHERS.  3 1 

later.  The  responsibility  for  order,  discipline,  progress,  records, 
reports,  communication  with  parents  and  school  authorities, 
must  fall  fully  upon  the  young  teacher,  who  has  a  friendly  as- 
sistant to  whom  she  can  go  for  advice  in  the  person  of  a  wise 
and  experienced  critic,  not  constantly  at  hand,  but  constantly  5 
within  reach. 

Between  the  critic  and  the  teacher-in-training  there  should 
exist  the  most  cordial  and  familiar  relations.  These  relations 
are  based  on  the  one  hand  upon  an  appreciation  of  wisdom  and 
kindness,  on  the  other,  upon  an  appreciation  of  sincerity  and  lo 
effort.  The  growth  of  such  relations,  and  the  fruitage  which 
follows  their  growth,  require  time.  A  half-year  is  not  too 
long  to  be  allotted  for  them.  During  this  half-year  experience, 
self-confidence  and  growth  in  power  have  been  gained ;  but  the 
pupil-teacher  is  still  not  ready  to  be  set  aside  to  work  out  hens 
own  destiny.  At  this  point  she  is  just  ready  for  marked  ad- 
vance, which  should  be  helped  and  guided.  To  remain  longer 
with  her  critic  friend  may  cause  imitation  rather  than  inde- 
pendence, may  lead  to  contentment  and  cessation  of  growth. 
She  should  now  be  transferred  to  the  care  of  a  second  critic  of  20 
a  different  personality,  but  of  equal  merit.  The  new  critic  is 
bound  by  her  duty  and  her  ambition  to  see  that  the  first  half 
year's  advancement  is  maintained  in  the  second.  The  pupil- 
teacher  finds  that  excellence  is  not  all  upon  one  model.  The 
value  of  individuality  impresses  her.  She  gains  a  view  of  solid  25 
principles  wrapped  in  diverse  characteristics.  Her  own  indi- 
viduality rises  to  new  importance,  and  the  elements  of  a 
growth  not  at  once  to  be  checked  start  up  within  her.  For 
the  care  of  the  second  critic  a  second  half  year  must  be  allowed, 
which  extends  the  practice  work  with  pupils  through  an  entire  30 
school  year.  For  the  theoretical  work  a  year  is  by  general 
experience  proven  sufBcient.  The  ideal  training  course  is, 
then,  one  of  two  years'  length. 

Provision  for  the  extended  practice  which  is  here  recom- 
mended can  be  made  only  by  city  training-schools  and  by  35 
normal  schools  having  connection  with  the  schools  of  a  city. 
To  set  apart  a  building  of  several  rooms  as  a  school  of  practice 


32  REPORT   OF   THE   COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN 

will  answer  the  purpose  only  when  there  are  very  few  teacher^ 
in  training.  In  order  to  give  each  pupil-teacher  a  year  of 
practice  the  number  of  practice  rooms  must  equal  the  number 
of  teachers  to  be  graduated  annually  from  the  training  school, 
5  be  the  number  ten,  or  fifty,  or  five  hundred.  In  any  con- 
siderable city  a  school  for  practice  will  not  suffice  ;  many 
schools  for  practice  must  be  secured.  This  can  be  done  by 
selecting  one  excellent  teacher  in  each  of  a  sufficient  number 
of  school  buildings,  and  making  her  a  critic-teacher,  giving  her 

lo charge  of  two  schoolrooms,  in  each  of  which  is  placed  a  pupil- 
teacher  for  training. 

This  insures  that  the  teaching  shall  be  done  as  nearly  as 
may  be  under  ordinary  conditions,  brings  the  pupil-teachers  at 
once  into  the  general  body  of  teachers,  makes  the  corps  of 

15  critics  a  leaven  of  zeal,  and  good  teaching  scattered  among 
the  schools.  This  body  of  critics  will  uplift  the  schools. 
More  capable  in  the  beginning  than  the  average  teacher,  led 
to  professional  study,  ambitious  for  the  best  things,  they  make 
greater  progress  than  they  otherwise  would  do,  and  are  suffi- 

2ocient  in  themselves  to  inspire  the  general  body  of  teachers. 
For  the  sake  of  the  pupil-teachers,  and  the  children,  too,  this 
plan  is  best.  Its  economy  also  will  readily  be  apparent.  This 
plan  has,  been  tried  for  several  years  in  the  schools  of  Provi- 
dence, with  results  fully  equal  to  those  herein  claimed. 

TESTS  OF   SUCCESS 

25  The  tests  of  success  in  practice-teaching  are  in  the  main 
those  to  be  applied  to  all  teaching.  Do  her  pupils  grow  more 
honest,  industrious,  polite?  Do  they  admire  their  teacher? 
Does  she  secure  obedience  and  industr}-'  only  while  demanding 
it,  or  has  she  influence  that  reaches  beyond  her  presence  ?     Do 

30 her  pupils  think  well  and  talk  well?  As  to  the  teacher  her- 
self :  Has  she  sympathy  and  tact,  self-reliance  and  originality, 
breadth  and  intensity?  Is  she  systematic,  direct,  and  business- 
like ?  Is  she  courteous,  neat  in  person  and  in  work  ?  Has  she 
discernment  of  character  and  a  just  standard  of  requirement 

35  and  attainment  ? 


ON   TRAINING  OF  TEACHERS.  33 

These  are  some  of  the  questions  one  must  answer  before  he 
pronounces  any  teacher  a  success  or  a  failure. 

Admission  to  a  training  school  assumes  that  the  pupil  has 
good  health,  good  scholarship,  good  sense,  good  ability,  and 
devotion  to  the  work  of  teaching.     If  all  these  continue  to  be   5 
exhibited  in  satisfactory  degree  and  the  pupil  goes  through  the 
prescribed  course  of  study  and  practice,  the  diploma  of  the 
school  should  naturally  mark  the  completion  of  this  work.     If 
it  appears  on  acquaintance  that  a  serious  mistake  has  been 
made  in  estimating  any  of  these  elements,  then,  so  soon  as  the  10 
mistake  is  fairly  apparent  and  is  probably  a  permanent  condi- 
tion, the  pupil  should  be  requested  to  withdraw  from  the  work. 
This  is  not  a  case  where  the  wheat  and  the  tares  should  grow 
together  until  the  harvest  at  graduation  day  or  the  examination 
preceding  it.     With  such  a  foundation  continually  maintained,  15 
it  is  the  duty  of  the  school  to  conquer  success  for  each  pupil. 

Teaching  does  not  require  genius.     Indeed  genius,  in  the 
sense  of  erratic  ability,  is  out  of  place  in  the  teacher's  chair. 
Most  good  teachers  at  this  close  of  the  nineteenth  century  are 
made,   not  born ;   made  from  good  material  well  fashioned.  20 
There  is,  however,  a  possibility  that  some  idiosyncrasy  of  char- 
acter, not  readily  discovered  until  the  test  is  made,  may  rise 
between  the  prospective  teacher  and  her  pupils,  making  her 
influence  over  them  small  or  harmful.     Such  a  defect,  if  it 
exist,  will  appear  during  the  practice-teaching,  and  the  critic  25 
will  discover  it.     This  defect,  on  its  first  discovery,  should  be 
plainly  pointed  out  to  the  teacher-in-training  and  her  efforts    • 
should  be  joined  with  those  of  the  critic  in  its  removal. 

If  this  effort  be  a  failure  and  the  defect  be  one  likely  to 
liarm  the  pupils  hereafter  to  be  taught,  then  the  teacher-in- 30 
training  should  be  informed  and  requested  to  withdraw  from 
the  school.  There  should  be  no  test  at  the  close  of  the  school 
course  to  determine  fitness  for  graduation.  Graduation  should 
find  the  teacher  serious  in  view  of  her  responsibilities,  hopeful 
because  she  has  learned  how  success  is  to  be  attained,  inspired  35 
with  the  belief  that  growth  in  herself  and  in  her  pupils  is  the 
great  demand  and  the  great  reward. 


34  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN 

TRAINING  OF  TEACHERS  FOR   SECONDARY  SCHOOLS 

Perhaps  one-sixth  of  the  great  body  of  pubHc  school 
teachers  in  the  United  States  are  engaged  in  secondary  work 
and  in  supervision.  These  are  the  leading  teachers.  They 
give  educational  tone  to  communities,  as  well  as  inspiration  to 

5  the  body  of  teachers. 

It  is  of  great  importance  that  they  be  imbued  with  the  pro- 
fessional spirit  springing  from  sound  professional  culture.  The 
very  difficult  and  responsible  positions  that  they  fill  demand 
ripe  scholarship,  more  than  ordinary  ability,  and  an  intimate 

10  knowledge  of  the  period  of  adolescence,  which  Rousseau  so 
aptly  styles  the  second  birth. 

The  elementary  schools  provide  for  the  education  of  the 
masses.  Our  secondary  schools  educate  our  social  and  busi- 
ness leaders.    The  careers  of  our  college  graduates  who  mainly 

15  fill  the  important  places  in  professional  and  political  life  are 
determined  largely  by  the  years  of  secondary  training.  The 
college  or  university  gives  expansion  and  finish,  the  secondary 
school  gives  character  and  direction. 

It  should  not  be  forgotten  that  the  superintendents  of  public 

20  schools  are  largely  taken  from  the  ranks  of  secondary  teachers, 
and  that  the  scholarship,  qualities,  and  training  required  for 
the  one  class  are  nearly  equivalent  to  that  demanded  for  the 
other. 

Our  high  schools,  too,  are  the  source  of  supply  for  teachers 

25  in  elementary  schools.  Hence  the  pedagogic  influences  ex- 
erted in  the  high  school  should  lead  to  excellence  in  elemen- 
tary teaching. 

The  superintendent  who  with  long  foresight  looks  to  the 
improvement  of  his  schools  will  labor  earnestly  to  improve 

30  and  especially  to  professionalize  the  teaching  in  his  high 
school.  The  management  which  makes  the  high  school  an 
independent  portion  of  the  school  system,  merely  attached 
and  loftily  superior,  which  limits  the  supervision  and  influence 
of  the  superintendent  to  the  primary  and  grammar  grades,  is 

35  short-sighted  and  destructive. 


ON  TRAINING  OF  TEACHERS.  35 

There  ought  also  to  be  a  place  and  a  plan  for  the  training 
of  teachers  for  normal  schools.  The  great  body  of  normal 
and  training  schools  in  the  United  States  are  secondary 
schools.  Those  who  are  to  teach  in  these  schools  need  broad 
scholarship,  thorough  understanding  of  educational  problems,  5 
and  trained  experience.  To  put  into  these  schools  teachers 
whose  scholarship  is  that  of  the  secondary  school  and  whose 
training  is  that  of  the  elementary  is  to  narrow  and  depress 
rather  than  broaden  and  elevate. 

If  college  graduates  are  put  directly  into  teaching  without  10 
special  study  and  training,  they  will  teach  as  they  have  been 
taught.     The   methods   of   college   professors  are  not  in   all 
cases  the  best,  and,  if  they  were,  high  school  pupils  are  not  to 
be  taught  nor  disciplined  as  college  students  are.    High  school 
teaching  and  discipline  can  be  thatjneither  of  the  grammar  15 
school  nor  of  the  college,  but  is  sui generis.    To  recognize  this 
truth   and   the   special  differences  is  vital  to  success.     This 
recognition  comes  only  from  much  experience  at  great  loss 
and  partial  failure,  or  by  happy  intuition  not  usually  to  be 
expected,  or   by   definite   instruction   and   directed    practice.  20 
Success  in  teaching  depends  upon  conformity  to  principles, 
and  these  principles  are  not  a  part  of  the  mental  equipment  of 
every  educated  person. 

These  considerations  and  others  are  the  occasion  of  a  grow- 
ing conviction,  widespread  in  this  land,  that  secondary  teachers  25 
should  be  trained  for  their  work  even  more  carefully  than  ele- 
mentary teachers  are  trained.  This  conviction  is  manifested 
in  the  efforts  to  secure  normal  schools  adapted  to  training 
teachers  for  secondary  schools,  notably  in  Massachusetts  and 
■  New  York,  and  in  the  numerous  professorships  of  pedagogy  30 
established  in  rapidly  increasing  numbers  in  our  colleges  and 
universities. 

The  training  of  teachers  for  secondary  schools  is  in  several 
essential  respects  the  same  as  that  for  teachers  of  elementary 
schools.     Both  demand  scholarship,  theory,  and  practice.    The  35 
degree  of  scholarship  required  for  secondary  teachers  is  by 
common  consent  fixed  at  a  collegiate  education.     No  one — 


36  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN 

with  rare  exceptions — should  be  employed  to  teach  in  a  high 
school  who  has  not  this  fundamental  preparation. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  enter  in  detail  into  the  work  of  theo- 
retical instruction  for  secondary  teachers.  The  able  men  at  the 
5  head  of  institutions  and  departments  designed  for  such  work 
neither  need  nor  desir6  advice  upon  this  matter.  And  yet  for 
the  purposes  of  this  report  it  may  be  allowable  to  point  out  a 
plan  for  the  organization  of  a  secondary  training  school. 

Let  it  be  supposed  that  two  essentials  have  been  found  in 
10  one  locality,  (i)  a  college  or  university  having  a  department  of 
pedagogy  and  a  department  of  post-graduate  work ;  (2)  a  high 
school,  academy,  or  preparatory  school  whose  managers  are 
willing  to  employ  and  pay  a  number  of  graduate  students  to 
teach  under  direction  for  a  portion  of  each  day.  These  two 
15  conditions  being  met,  we  will  suppose  that  pedagogy  is  offered 
as  an  elective  to  the  college  seniors. 

Two  years  of  instruction  in  the  science  and  art  of  teaching 
are  to  be  provided ;  one,  mostly  theory  with  some  practice, 
elective  during  the  senior  year  ;  the  other,  mostly  practice  with 
20  some  theory,  elective  for  one  year  as  post-graduate  work. 
During  the  senior  year  is  to  be  studied  : 

THE  SCIENCE  OF  TEACHING 

The  elements  of  this  science  are: 

I.    Psychology  in  its  physiological,  apperceptive,  and  experi* 
mental  features.     The  period  of  adolescence  here  assumes  the 

25  prominence  that  childhood  has  in  the  psychological  study  pre- 
paratory to  teaching  in  lower  schools.  This  is  the  period  of 
beginnings,  the  beginning  of  a  more  ambitious  and  generous 
life,  a  life  having  the  future  wrapped  up  in  it ;  a  transition 
period,  of  mental  storm  and  stress,  in  which  egoism  gives  way 

30  to  altruism,  romance  has  charm,  and  the  social,  moral,  and 
religious  feelings  bud  and  bloom.  To  guide  youth  at  this 
formative  stage,  in  which  an  active  fermentation  occurs  that 
may  give  wine  or  vinegar  according  to  conditions,  requires  a 
deep  and  sympathetic  nature,  and  that  knowledge  of  the  chang- 

35  ing  life  which  supplies  guidance  wise  and  adequate. 


ON    TRAINING   OF  TEACHERS.  37 

II.  Methodology  :  a  discussion  of  the  principles  of  educa- 
tion and  of  the  methods  of  teaching  the  studies  of  the  sec- 
ondary schools. 

III.  School  Economy  should  be  studied  in  a  much  wider 
and    more   thorough   way   than    is   required    for  elementary   5 
teachers.     The  school  systems  of  Germany,  France,  England, 
and  the  leading  systems  of  the  United  States  should  also  be 
studied. 

IV.  History  of  education,  the  tracing  of  modern  doctrine 
back  to  its  sources ;  those  streams  of  influence  now  flowing  lo 
and  those  that  have  disappeared  in  the  sands  of  the  centuries. 

V.  The  philosophy  of  education  as  a  division  of  an  all- 
involving  philosophy  of  life  and  thought  in  which  unity  is 
found. 

THE  ART  OF  TEACHING 

This  includes  observation  and  practice.  The  observation  15 
should  include  the  work  of  different  grades  and  of  different 
localities,  with  minute  and  searching  comparison  and  reports 
upon  special  topics.  How  does  excellent  primary  work  differ 
from  excellent  grammar-grade  work.'*  How  do  the  standards 
of  excellence  differ  between  grammar  grades  and  high-school  20 
grades  ?  between  high-school  and  college  work  ?  What  are  the 
arguments  for  and  against  coeducation  in  secondary  schools 
as  determined  by  experience?  What  are  the  upper  and  lower 
limits  of  secondary  education  as  determined  by  the  nature  of 
the  pupil's  effort?  25 

In  the  college  class  in  pedagogy  much  more  than  in  the 
elementary  normal  school  can  the  class  itself  be  made  to  afford 
a  means  of  practice  to  its  members.  Quizzes  may  be  con- 
ducted by  students  upon  the  chapters  of  the  books  read  or  the 
lectures  of  the  professors.  These  exercises  may  have  for  their  30 
object  review,  or  improved  statement,  or  enlarged  inference 
and  application,  and  they  afford  an  ample  opportunity  to 
cultivate  the  art  of  questioning,  skill  in  which  is  the  teacher's 
most  essential  accomplishment. 

The  head  of  the  department  of  pedagogy  will  of  course  35 


.  38  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

present  the  essential  methods  of  teaching,  and  the  heads  of 
other  departments  may  lecture  on  methods  pertaining  to  their 
subject  of  study  ;  or  secondary  teachers  of  known  success  may 
still  better  present  the  methods  now  approved  in  the  several 
5  departments  of  secondary  work. 

POST-GRADUATE    YEAR 

To  those  graduates  who  have  elected  pedagogy  in  theii 
senior  year  may  be  offered  the  opportunity  of  further  study  in 
this  department,  with  such  other  post-graduate  work  as  taste 
and    opportunity  permit.      From   those   selecting  advanced 

lowork  in  pedagogy  the  board  in  charge  of  the  affiliated  second- 
ary school  should  elect  as  many  teachers  for  its  school  as  are 
needed,  employing  them  for  two-thirds  time  at  one-half  the 
usual  pay  for  teachers  without  experience.  Under  the  pro- 
fessor of  pedagogy  of  the  college,  the  principal,  and  the  heads 

15  of  departments  of  the  school  these  student-teachers  should  do 
their  work,  receiving  advice,  criticism,  and  illustration  as  occa- 
sion requires.  The  time  for  which  they  are  employed  would 
provide  for  two  hours  of  class  work  and  about  one  hour  of 
clerical  work  or  study  while  in  charge  of  a  schoolroom.     These 

20  student-teachers  should  be  given  abundant  opportunity  for 
the  charge  of  pupils  while  reciting  or  studying,  at  recess  and 
dismissals,  and  should  have  all  the  responsibilities  of  members 
of  the  faculty  of  this  school.  Their  work  should  be  inspected 
as  frequently  as  may  be  by  the  heads  of  the  departments  in 

25  which  they  teach,  by  the  principal  of  the  school,  and  by  the 

professor  of  pedagogy.    These  appointments  would  be  virtually 

fellowships  with  an  opportunity  for  most  profitable  exj>erience. 

In  the  afternoon  of  each  day  these  students  should  attend 

to  college  work  and  especially   to   instruction  from  the  pro- 

30  fessor  in  pedagogy,  who  could  meet  them  occasionally  with  the 
heads  of  the  departments  under  whose  direction  they  are 
working. 

On  Saturdays  a  seminary  of  two  hours*  duration  might  be  held, 
conducted  by  the  professor  of  pedagogy  and  attended  by  the 

35  student-teachers  and  the  more  ambitious  teachers  of  experl 


ON  TRAINING  OF  TEACHERS.  39 

ence  in  the  vicinity.  These  seminaries  would  doubtless  be  of 
great  profit  to  both  classes  of  participants  and  the  greater  to 
each  because  of  the  other.  [Such  a  training  school  for  sec- 
ondary teachers  in  connection  with  Brown  University  and  the 
Providence  High  School  is  contemplated  for  the  coming  year.]   5 

It  will  not  be  needful  to  specify  further  the  advantages  to 
the  student-teachers.  The  arrangement  likewise  affords  advan- 
tage to  the  affiliated  school,  especially  in  the  breadth  of  view 
this  work  would  afford  to  the  heads  of  departments,  the 
intense  desire  it  would  beget  in  them  for  professional  skill,  the  10 
number  of  perplexing  problems  which  it  would  force  them  to 
attempt  the  solution  of. 

The  visits  of  the  professor  of  pedagogy,  and  the  constant 
comparison  he  would  make  between  actual  and  ideal  conditions, 
would  lead  him  to  seek  the  improvement  not  only  of  the  stu-15 
dents  in  practice  but  of  the  school  as  a  whole. 

When  several  earnest  and  capable  people  unite  in  a  mutual 
effort  to  improve  themselves  and  their  work  all  the  essential 
conditions  of  progress  are  present. 

Horace  S.  Tarbell,  Chairman,  20 

Superintendent  of  Schools,  Providence,  R.  L 

Edward  Brooks, 
Superintendent  of  Schools,  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

Thomas  M.  Balliet, 
Superintendent  of  Schools,  Springfield,  Mass.      25 

Newton  C.  Dougherty, 
Superintendent  of  Schools,  Peoria,  111. 

Oscar  H.  Cooper, 
Superintendent  of  Schools,  Galveston,  Tex. 


II 

REPORT   OF   THE 

SUB-COMMITTEE   ON    THE   CORRELATION    OF 
STUDIES    IN   ELEMENTARY    EDUCATION 

The   undersigned    Committee   agrees  upon   the    following 

report,  each  member  reserving  for  himself  the  expression  of 

his  individual  divergence  from  the  opinion  of  the  majority, 

by  a  statement  appended  to  his  signature,  enumerating  the 

5  points  to  which  exception  is  taken  and  the  grounds  for  them. 

I.   CORRELATION  OF   STUDIES 

Your  Committee  understands  by  correlation  of  studies: 

/.  Logical  order  of  topics  and  branches 

First,  the  arrangement  of  topics  in  proper  sequence  in  the 
course  of  study,  in  such  a  manner  that  each  branch  develops  in 
an  order  suited  to  the  natural  and  easy  progress  of  the  child, 
loand  so  that  each  step  is  taken  at  the  proper  time  to  help  his 
advance  to  the  next  step  in  the  same  branch,  or  to  the  next 
steps  in  other  related  branches  of  the  course  of  study. 

2.  Symmetrical  whole  of  studies  in  the  world  of  human 
learning 

Second,  the  adjustment  of  the  branches  of  study  in  such  a 
manner  that  the  whole  course  at  any  given  time  represents  all 

15  the  great  divisions  of  human  learning,  as  far  as  is  possible  at 
the  stage  of  maturity  at  which  the  pupil  has  arrived,  and  that 
each  allied  group  of  studies  is  represented  by  some  one  of 
its  branches  best  adapted  for  the  epoch  in  question;  it  being 
implied  that  there  is  an  equivalence  of  studies  to  a  greater  or 

20  less  degree  within  each  group,  and  that  each  branch  of  human 
learning  should  be  represented  by  some  equivalent  study;  so 
that,  while  no  great  division  is  left  unrepresented,  no  group 
40 


I 


ON  CORRELATION   OF   STUDIES.  4I 

shall   have   superfluous    representatives   and    thereby    debar 
other  groups  from  a  proper  representation. 

J.  Psychological  symmetry — the  whole  min^- 
Third,  the  selection  and  arrangement  of  the  branches  and 
topics  within  each  branch  considered  psychologically  with 
a  view  to  afford  the  best  exercise  of  the  faculties  of  the  5 
mind,  and  to  secure  the  unfolding  of  those  faculties  in  their 
natural  order,  so  that  no  one  faculty  is  so  overcultivated 
or  so  neglected  as  to  produce  abnormal  or  one-sided  mental 
development. 

/J..  Correlation  of  piipiVs  course  of  study  with  the  world  in 
which  he  lives — his  spiritual  and  natural  environment 

Fourth  and  chiefly,  your  Committee  understands  by  corre- 10 
lation   of  studies   the  selection  and  arrangement  in    orderfy 
sequence  of  such  objects  of  study  as  shall  give  the  child  an 
insight  into  the  world  that  he  lives  in,  and  a  command  over  its  .   P.  ^ 
resources  such  as  is  obtained  by  a  helpful  co-operation  with 
one's  fellows.     In  a  word,  the  chief  consideration  to  which  all  15 
others  are  to  be  subordinated,  in  tlie  opinion  of  your  Com- 
mittee, is  this  requirement  of  the  civilization  into  which  the 
child  is  born,  as  determining  not  only  what  he  shall  study  in 
school,  but  what  habits  and  customs  he  shall  be  taught  in  the 
family  before  the  school  age  arrives;  as  well  as  that  he  shall  2^ 
acquire  a  skilled  acquaintance  with    some  one   of  a  definite 
series  of  trades,  professions,  or  vocations  in  the  years  that  fol- 
low school ;  and,  furthermore,  that  this  question  of  the  relation 
of  the  pupil  to  his  civilization  determines  what  political  duties 
he  shall  assume  and  what  religious  faith  or  spiritual  aspirations  25 
shall  be  adopted  for  the  conduct  of  his  life. 

To  make  more  clear  their  reasons  for  the  preference  here  . 
expressed  for  the  objective  and  practical  basis  of  selection  of 
topics  for  the  course  of  study,  rather  than  the  subjective  basis 
so  long  favored  by  educational  writers,  your  Committee  would  30 
describe  the  psychological  basis,  already  mentioned,  as  being 
merely  formal  in  its  character,  relating  only  to  the  exercise  of 
the  so-called  mental  faculties. 


42  REPORT   OF   THE   COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN 


It  would  furnish  a  training  of  spiritual  powers  analogous  to 
the  gymnastic  training  of  the  muscles  of  the  body.  Gym- 
nastics may  develop  strength  and  agihty  without  leading  to 
any  skill  in  trades  or  useful  employment.  So  an  abstract 
5  psychological  training  may  develop  the  will,  the  intellect,  the 
imagination,  or  the  memory,  but  without  leading  to  an  exer- 
cise of  acquired  power  in  the  interests  of  civilization.  The 
game  of  chess  would  furnish  a  good  course  of  study  for  the 
discipline  of  the  powers  of  attention  and  calculation  of  abstract 

lo  combinations,  but  it  would  give  its  possessor  little  or  no 
knowledge  of  man  or  nature.  The  psychological  ideal  which 
has  prevailed  to  a  large  extent  in  education  has  in  the  old 
phrenology,  and  in  the  recent  studies  in  physiological  psy- 
chology, sometimes  given  place  to  a  biological  ideal.     Instead 

15  of  the  view  of  mind  as  made  up  of  faculties  like  will,  intel- 
lect, imagination  and  emotion,  conceived  to  be  all  necessary 
to  the  soul  if  developed  in  harmony  with  one  another,  the 
concept  of  nerves  or  brain-tracts  is  used  as  the  ultimate  regu- 
lative principle  to  determine  the  selection  and  arrangement  of 

20  studies.  Each  part  of  the  brain  is  supposed  to  have  its  claim 
on  the  attention  of  the  educator,  and  that  study  is  thought  to 
be  the  most  valuable  which  employs  normally  the  larger  num- 
ber of  brain-tracts.  This  view  reaches  an  extreme  in  the 
direction  of  formal  as  opposed  to  objective  or  practical  grounds 

25  for  selecting  a  course  of  study.  While  the  old  psychology  with 
its  mental  faculties  concentrated  its  attention  on  the  mental 
processes  and  neglected  the  world  of  existing  objects  and  rela- 
tions upon  which  those  processes  were  directed,  physiological 
psychology  tends  to  confine  its  attention  to  the  physical  part 

30  of  the  process,  the  organic  changes  in  the  brain  cells  and  their 
functions. 

Your  Committee  is  of  the  opinion  that  psychology  of  both 
kinds,  physiological  and  introspective,  can  hold  only  a  sub- 
ordinate place  in  the  settlement  of  questions  relating  to  the 

35  correlation  of  studies.  The  branches  to  be  studied,  and  the 
extent  to  which  they  are  studied,  will  be  determined  mainly 
by  the  demands  of  one's  civilization.     These   will  prescribe 


ON  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  43 

I  what  is  most  useful  to  make  the  individual  acquainted  with 

i  physical  nature  and  with  human  nature  so  as  to  fit  him  as  an 
individual  to  perform  his  duties  in  the  several  institutions — 
family,  civil  society,  the  state,  and  the  Church.     But  next  after 

I  this,   psychology  will    furnish  important    considerations   that   5 
will  largely  determine  the  methods  of  instruction,  the  order  of 
taking  up  the  several  topics  so  as  to  adapt  the  school  work  to 

I  the  growth  of  the  pupil's  capacity,  and  the  amount  of  work  so 
as  not  to  overtax  his  powers  by  too  much  or  arrest  the  devel- 
opment of  strength  by  too  little.     A  vast  number  of  subor-  lo 
dinate  details  belonging  to  the  pathology  of  education,  such 
as  the  hygienic  features  of  school  architecture  and  furniture, 

I  programmes,  the  length  of  study  hours  and  of  class  exercises, 
recreation,  and  bodily  reactions  against  mental  effort,  will  be 
finally  settled  by  scientific  experiment  in  the  department  of  15 
physiological  psychology. 

Inasmuch  as  your  Committee  is  limited  to  the  consideration 
of  the  correlation  of  studies  in  the  elementary  school,  it  has 
considered  the  question  of  the  course  of  study  in  general  only 
in  so  far  as  this  has  been  found  necessary  in  discussing  the  20 
grounds  for  the  selection  of  studies  for  the  period  of  school 
education  occupying  the  eight  years  from  six  to  fourteen  years, " 
or  the  school  period  between  the  kindergarten  on  the  one  hand 
and  the  secondary  school  on  the  other.     It  has  not  been  pos- 
sible to  avoid  some  inquiry  into  the  true  distinction  between  25 
secondary  and  elementary  studies,  since  one  of  the  most  impor-  . 
tant  questions  forced  upon  the  attention  of  your  Committee 
is  that  of  the  abridgment  of  the  elementary  course  of  study 
from  eight  or  more  years  to  seven  or  even  six  years,  and  the 
corresponding  increase  of  the  time  devoted  to  studies  usually  30 
assigned  to  the  high  school  and  supposed  to  belong  to  the 
secondary  course  of  study  for  some  intrinsic  reason. 

II.  THE  COURSE  OF  STUDY— EDUCATIONAL  VALUES 

Your  Committee  would  report  that  it  has  discussed  in  de- 
tail the  several  branches  of  study  that  have  found  a  place  in 
the  curriculum  of  the  elementary  school,  with  a  view  to  dis-  35 


44  REPORT  OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

cover  their  educational  value  for  developing  and  training  thi 
faculties  of  the  mind,  and  more  especially  for  correlating  th^ 
pupil  with  his  spiritual  and  natural  environment  in  the  world 
in  which  he  lives.  i 

A.  Language  studies 

There  is  first  to  be  noted  the  prominent  place  of  language 
study  that  takes  the  form  of  reading,  penmanship,  am 
grammar  in  the  first  eigHt  years'  work  of  the  school.  It 
claimed  for  the  partiality  shown  to  these  studies  that  it  ii 
justified  by  the  fact  that  language  is  the  instrument  that  make! 

lo  possible  human  social  organization.     It  enables  each  person  toi 
communicate  his  individual  experience  to  his  fellows  and  thus 
permits  each  to  profit  by  the  experience  of  all.     The  written 
and  printed  forms  of  speech  preserve  human  knowledge  and 
make   progress  in    civilization   possible.      The   conclusion    is 

15  reached  that  learning  to  read  and  write  should  be  the  leading 
study  of  the  pupil  in  his  first  four  years  of  school.  Reading 
and  writing  are  not  so  much  ends  in  themselves  as  means  for 
the  acquirement  of  all  other  human  learning.  This  considera- 
tion alone  would  be  sufficient  to  justify  their  actual  place  in 

20  the  work  of  the  elementary  school.  But  these  branches 
require  of  the  learner  a  difficult  process  of  analysis.  The  pupil 
must  identify  the  separate  words  in  the  sentence  he  uses,  and 
in  the  next  place  must  recognize  the  separate  sounds  in  each 
word.     It  requires  a  considerable  effort  for  the  child  or  the 

25  savage  to  analyze  his  sentence  into  its  constituent  words,  and 
a  still   greater  effort  to  discriminate  its  elementary  sounds 
Reading,  writing,  and  spelling  in  their  most  elementary  fori 
therefore,  constitute  a  severe  training  in  mental  analysis  f< 
the  child  of  six  to  ten  years  of  age.     We  are  told  that  it  is  fal 

30 more  disciplinary  to  the  mind  than  any  species  of  observation 
of  differences  among  material  things,  because  of  the  fact  that 
the  word  has  a  twofold  character — addressed  to  external  sense 
as  spoken  sound  to  the  ear,  or  as  written  and  printed  words 
to  the  eye — but  containing  a  meaning  or  sense  addressed  to 

35  the   understanding   and   only  to  be  seized  by  introspection. 


\ 


ON  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  45 

The  pupil  must  call  up  the  corresponding  idea  by  thought, 
memory,  and  imagination,  or  else  the  word  will  cease  to  be  a 
word  and  remain  only  a  sound  or  character. 

On  the  other  hand,  observation  of  things  and  movements 
does  not  necessarily  involve  this  twofold  act  of  analysis,  intro-  5 
spective   and    objective,   but   only   the   latter— the   objective 
analysis.     It  is  granted  that  we  all  have  frequent  occasion  to 
condemn  poor  methods  of  instruction  as  teaching  words  rather 
than  things.     But  we  admit  that  we  mean  empty  sounds  or 
characters  rather  than  true  words.     Our  suggestions  for  the  10 
correct  method  of  teaching  amount  in  this  case  simply  to  lay- 
ing stress  on  the  meaning  of  the  word,  and  to  setting  the 
teaching  process  on  the  road  of  analysis  of  content  rather  than 
form.     In  the  case  of  words  used  to  store  up  external  observa- 
tion the  teacher  is  told,  to  repeat  and  make  alive  again  the  act  15 
of  observation  by  which  the  word  obtained  its  original  mean- 
ing.    In  the  case  of  a  word  expressing  a  relation  between  facts 
or  events,  the  pupil  is  to  be  taken  step  by  step  through  the 
process  of  reflection  by  which  the  idea  was  built  up.     Since 
the  word,  spoken  and  written,  is  the  sole  instrument  by  which  20 
reason  can  fix,  preserve,  and  communicate  both  the  data  of 
sense  and   the  relations  discovered  between   them  by  reflec- 
tion, no  new  method  in  education  has  been  able  to  supplant  in 
the  school  the  branches,  reading  and  penmanship.     But  the 
real  improvements  in  method  have  led  teachers  to  lay  greater  25 
and  greater  stress  on  the  internal  factor  of  the  word,  on  its 
meaning,  and  have  in  manifold  ways  shown  how  to  repeat  the 
original  experiences  that  gave  the  meaning  to  concrete  words, 
and  the  original  comparisons  and  logical  deductions  by  which 
the  ideas  of  relations  and  causal  processes  arose  in  the  mind  30 
and  required  abstract  words  to  preserve  and  communicate  them. 
It  has  been  claimed  that  it  would  be  better  to  have  first  a 
basis  of  knowledge  of  things,  and  secondarily  and  subsequently 
a  knowledge  of  words.     But  it  has  been  replied  to  this,  that 
the  progress  of  the  child  in  learning  to  talk  indicates  his  ascent  35 
out  of  mere  impressions  into  the  possession  of  true  knowledge. 
For  he  names  objects  only  after  he  has  made  some  synthesis 


46  REPORT   OF   THE   COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN 

of  his  impressions  and  has  formed  general  ideas.  He  recog 
nizes  the  same  object  under  different  circumstances  of  time 
and  place,  and  also  recognizes  other  objects  belonging  to  th^ 
same  class  by  and  with  names.  Hence  the  use  of  the  won 
5  indicates  a  higher  degree  of  self-activity — the  stage  of  mer< 
impressions  without  words  or  signs  being  a  comparatively  pasj 
sive  state  of  mind.  What  we  mean  by  things  first  and  words 
afterward,  is  therefore  not  the  apprehension  of  objects  by  pas* 
sive  impressions  so  much  as  the  active  investigation  and  exi 

loperimenting  which  come  after  words  are  used  and  the  highei 

forms  of  analysis  are  called  into  being  by  that  invention  of  rea<i 

son  known  as  language,  which,  as  before  said,  is  a  synthesis 

of  thing  and  thought,  of  outward  sign  and  inward  signification* 

Rational  investigation  cannot  precede  the  invention  of  Ian 

iSguage  any  more  than  blacksmithing  can  precede  the  invention 
of  hammers,  anvils,  and  pincers.  For  language  is  the  necesi 
sary  tool  of  thought  used  in  the  conduct  of  the  analysis  anc^ 
synthesis  of  investigation. 

Your  Committee  would  sum  up  these  considerations  by  say 

2oing  that  language  rightfully  forms  the  center  of  instruction  ir 
the  elementary  school,  but  that  progress  in  methods  of  teach 
ing  is  to  be  made,  as  hitherto,  chiefly  by  laying  more  stress  or 
the  internal  side  of  the  word,  its  meaning;  using  better  gradec 
steps  to  build  up  the  chain  of  experience  or   the  train   o 

25  thought  that  the  word  expresses. 

The  first  three  years'  work  of  the  child  is  occupied  mainlj 
with  the  mastery  of  the  printed  and  written  forms  of  th< 
words  of  his  colloquial  vocabulary;  words  that  he  is  alreadj 
familiar  enough  with  as  sounds  addressed  to  the  ear.     He  has  tc 

30  become  familiar  with  the  new  forms  addressed  to  the  eye,  and  ii 
would  be  an  unwise  method  to  require  him  to  learn  many  nev 
words  at  the  same  time  that  he  is  learning  to  recognize  his  olc 
words  in  their  new  shape.  But  as  soon  as  he  has  acquirec 
some  facility  in  reading  what  is  printed  in  the  colloquial  style 

35  he  may  go  on  to  selections  from  standard  authors.  Th( 
literary  selections  should  be  graded,  and  are  graded  in  almost 
all  series  of  readers  used  in  our  elementary  schools,  in  sucl 


ON  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  47 

a  way  as  to  bring  those  containing  the  fewest  words  outside 
of  the  colloquial  vocabulary  into  the  lower  books  of  the  series, 
and  increasing  the  difficulties  step  by  step  as  the  pupil  grows 
in  maturity.  The  selections  are  literary  works  of  art  possess- 
ing the  required  organic  unity  and  a  proper  reflection  of  this  5 
unity  in  the  details,  as  good  works  of  art  must  do.  But  they 
portray  situations  of  the  soul,  or  scenes  of  hfe,  or  elaborated 
reflections,  of  which  the  child  can  obtain  some  grasp  through 
his  capacity  to  feel  and  think,  although  in  scope  and  com- 
pass they  far  surpass  his  range.  They  are  adapted  therefore  to  10 
lead  him  out  of  and  beyond  himself,  as  spiritual  guides. 

Literary  style  employs,  besides  words  common  to  the  collo- 
quial vocabulary,  words  used  in  a  semi-technical  sense  expres- 
sive of  fine  shades  of  thought  and  emotion.  The  literary  work 
of  art  furnishes  a  happy  expression  for  some  situation  of  the  15 
soul,  or  some  train  of  reflection  hitherto  unutterable  in  an 
adequate  manner.  If  the  pupil  learns  this  literary  production, 
he  finds  himself  powerfully  helped  to  understand  both  himself 
and  his  fellow-men.  The  most  practical  knowledge  of  all,  it 
will  be  admitted,  is  a  knowledge  of  human  nature — a  knowl-20 
edge  that  enables  one  to  combine  with  his  fellow-men  and  to 
share  with  them  the  physical  and  spiritual  wealth  of  the  race. 
Of  this  high  character  as  humanizing  or  civilizing,  are  the 
favorite  works  of  literature  found  in  the  school  readers,  about 
one  hundred  and  fifty  English  and  American  writers  being  25 
drawn  upon  for  the  material.  Such  are  Shakspere's  speeches 
of  Brutus  and  Mark  Antony,  Hamlet's  and  Macbeth's  solilo- 
quies, Milton's  L'Allegro  and  II  Penseroso,  Gray's  Elegy, 
Tennyson's  Charge  of  the  Light  Brigade  and  Ode  on  the 
Death  of  the  Duke  of  Wellington,  Byron's  Waterloo,  Irving*S3o 
Rip  Van  Winkle,  Webster's  Reply  to  Hayne,  The  trial  of 
Knapp,"  and  Bunker  Hill  oration,  Scott's  Lochinvar,  Marmion, 
and  Roderick  Dhu,  Bryant's  Thanatopsis,  Longfellow's  Psalm 
of  Life,  Paul  Revere,  and  The  Bridge,  O'Hara's  Bivouac  of 
the  Dead,  Campbell's  Hohenlinden,  Collins*  How  Sleep  the  35 
Brave,  Wolfe's  Burial  of  Sir  John  Moore,  and  other  fine  prose 
and   poeTfy  from  Addison,    Emerson,  Franklin,  The    Bible, 


LI 


48  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

Hawthorne,  Walter  Scott,  Goldsmith,  Wordsworth,  Swift, 
Milton,  Cooper,  Whittier,  Lowell,  and  the  rest.  The  read- 
ing and  study  of  fine  selections  in  prose  and  verse  furnish  the 
chief  aesthetic  training  of  the  elementary  school.  But  this| 
5  should  be  re-enforced  by  some  study  of  photographic  or  otheri 
reproductions  of  the  world's  great  masterpieces  of  architec«| 
ture,  sculpture,  and  painting.  The  frequent  sight  of  thes 
reproductions  is  good;  the  attempt  to  copy  or  sketch  them 
with  the  pencil  is  better;  best  of  all  is  an  aesthetic  lesson  oaj 

10  their  composition,  attempting  to  describe  in  words  the  idea  on 
the  whole  that  gives  the  work  its  organic  unity,  and  thd 
devices  adopted  by  the  artist  to  reflect  this  idea  in  the  details 
and  re-enforce  its  strength.  The  aesthetic  taste  of  teacher  and 
pupil  can  be  cultivated  by  such  exercises,  and  once  set  on  the, 

15  road  of  development  this  taste  may  improve  through  life. 

A  third  phase  of  language  study  in  the  elementary  schoohj 
is  formal  grammar.  The  works  of  literary  art  in  the  readers, 
re-enforced  as  they  ought  to  be  by  supplementary  reading  at 
home  of  the  whole  works  from  which  the  selections  for  the 

20  school  readers  are  made,  will  educate  the  child  in  the  use  of  ai 
higher  and  better  English  style.  Technical  grammar  never  cart 
do  this.  Only  familiarity  with  fine  English  works  will  insure 
one  a  good  and  correct  style.  But  grammar  is  the  science  of 
language,  and  as  the  first  of  the  seven  liberal  arts  it  has  long 

25  held  sway  in  "school  as  the  disciplinary  study  par  excellence.  A 
survey  of  its  educational  value,  subjective  and  objective,  usually 
produces  the  conviction  that  it  is  to  retain  the  first  place  in  the 
future.  Its  chief  objective  advantage  is  that  it  shows  the 
structure  of  language,  and  the  logical  forms  of  subject,  predi 

3ocate,  and  modifier,  thus  revealing  the  essential  nature  o! 
thought  itself,  the  most  important  of  all  objects  because  it  is 
self-object.  On  the  subjective  or  psychological  side,  grammar 
demonstrates  its  title  to  the  first  place  by  its  use  as  a  disci- 
pline in  subtle  analysis,  in  logical  division  and  classification 

35  in  the  art  of  questioning,  and  in  the  mental  accomplishment  o 
making  exact  definitions.  Nor  is  this  an  empty,  formal  disci- 
pline, for  its  subject  matter,  language,  is  a  product   of  th< 


ON  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  49 

reason  of  a  people  not  as  individuals  but  as  a  social  whole,  and 
the  vocabulary  holds  in  its  store  of  words  the  generalized 
experience  of  that  people,  including  sensuous  observation  and 
reflection,  feeling  and  emotion,  instinct  and  volition. 

No  formal  labor  on  a  great  objective  field  is  ever  lost  wholly,   5 
since  at  the  very  least   it  has  the  merit  of  familiarizing  the 
pupil  with  the  contents  of  some  one  extensive  province  that 
borders  on  his  life,  and  with  which  he  must  come  into  correla- 
tion; but  it  is  easy  for  any  special  formal  discipline,  when  con- 
tinued too  long,  to  paralyze  or  arrest  growth  at  that  stage.  15 
The  overcultivation  of  the  verbal  memory  tends  to  arrest  the 
growth  of  critical  attention  and  reflection.     Memory  of  acces- 
sory details  too,  so  much  prized  in  the  school,  is  also  cultivated 
often  at  the  expense  of  an  insight  into  the  organizing  principle 
of  the  whole  and  the  causal  nexus  that  binds  the  parts.     So  10 
too  the  study  of  quantity,  if  carried  to  excess,  may  warp  the 
mind  into  a  habit  of  neglecting  quality  in  its  observation  and 
reflection.     As  there  is  no  subsumption  in  the  quantitative 
judgment  but  only  dead  equality  or  inequality  (A  is  equal  to  or 
greater  or  less  than  B),  there  is  a  tendency  to  atrophy  in  the  fac-  20 
ulty  of  concrete  syllogistic  reasoning  on  the  part  of  the  person 
devoted  exclusively  to  mathematics.    For  the  normal  syllogism 
usesjudgments  wherein  the  subject  is  subsumed  under  the  pred- 
icate (This  is  a  rose — the  individual  rose  is  subsumed  under 
the  class  rose;  Socrates  is  a  man,  etc.).     Such  reasoning  con- 25 
cerns  individuals  in  two  aspects,  first  as  concrete  wholes  and 
secondly  as  members  of  higher  totalities  or  classes — species 
and  genera.     Thus,  too,  grammar,  rich  as  it  is  in  its  contents, 
is  only  a  formal  discipline  as  respects  the  scientific,  historic,  or 
literary  contents  of  language,  and  is  indiff"erent  to  them.     A 30 
training  for  four  or  five  years  in  parsing  and  grammatical  anal- 
ysis practiced   on  literary   works  of  art  (Milton,  Shakspere, 
Tennyson,  Scott)  is  a  training   of  the   pupil   into  habits  of 
indifference  toward  and  neglect  of  the  genius  displayed  in  the 
literary  work  of  art,  and  into  habits  of  impertinent  and  trifling  35 
attention  to  elements  employed  as  material  or  texture,  and  a 
corresponding  neglect  of  the  structural  form  whid^alone^  is 


50  REPORT   OF   THE   COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN 

the  work  of  the  artist.  A  parallel  to  this  would  be  the  mason's 
habit  of  noticing  only  the  brick  and  mortar,  or  the  stone  and 
cement,  in  his  inspection  of  the  architecture,  say  of  Sir  Chris- 
topher Wren.  A  child  overtrained  to  analyze  and  classify 
5  shades  of  color — examples  of  this  one  finds  occasionally  in  a 
primary  school  whose  specialty  is  "objective  teaching" — might 
in  later  life  visit  an  art  gallery  and  make  an  inventory  of  colors 
without  getting  even  a  glimpse  of  a  painting  as  a  work  of  art. 
Such  overstudy  and  misuse  of  grammar  as  one  finds  in  the 

lo  elementary  school,  it  is  feared,  exists  to  some  extent  in  sec- 
ondary schools  and  even  in  colleges,  in  the  work  of  mastering 
the  classic  authors. 

Your  Committee  is  unanimous  in  the  conviction  that  formal 
grammar   should   not   be   allowed   to   usurp   the  place   of   a 

15  study  of  the  literary  work  of  art  in  accordance  with  literary 
method.  The  child  can  be  gradually  trained  to  see  the 
technical  "motives"  of  a  poem  or  prose  work  of  art  and  to 
enjoy  the  aesthetic  inventions  of  the  artist.  The  analysis  ot  a 
work  of  art  should  discover  the  idea  that  gives  it  organic  unity; 

20 the  collision  and  the  complication  resulting;  the  solution  and 
denouement.  Of  course  these  things  must  be  reached  in  the 
elementary  school  without  even  a  mention  of  their  technical 
terms.  The  subject  of  the  piece  is  brought  out ;  its  reflection 
in  the  conditions  of  the  time  and  place  to  heighten  interest  by 

25 showing  its  importance;  its  second  and  stronger  reflection  in 
the  several  details  of  its  conflict  and  struggle;  its  reflection  in 
the  denouement  wherein  its  struggle  ends  in  victory  or  defeat 
and  the  ethical  or  rational  interests  are  vindicated, — and  the  j 
results  move  outward,  returning  to  the  environment  again  in 

30  ever-widening  circles, — something  resembling  this  is  to  be  found 
in  every  work  of  art,  and  there  are  salient  features  which  can 
be  briefly  but  profitably  made  subject  of  comment  in  familiar 
language  with  even  the  youngest  pupils.  There  is  an  ethical 
and  an  sesthetical  content  to  each  work  of  art.     It  is  profitable 

35  to  point  out  both  of  these  in  the  interest  of  the  child's  growing 
insight  into  human  nature.  The  ethical  should,  however,  be 
kept  in  subordination  to  the  aesthetical,  but  for  the  sake  of  the 


ON  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  (    51 

supreme  interests  of  the  ethical  itself.  Otherwise  the  study  of 
a  work  of  art  degenerates  into  a  goody-goody  performance, 
and  its  effects  on  the  child  are  to  cause  a  reaction  against  the 
moral.  The  child  protects  his  inner  individuality  against 
effacement  through  external  authority  by  taking  an  attitude  5 
of  rebellion  against  stories  with  an  appended  moral.  Herein 
the  superiority  of  the  aesthetical  in  literary  art  is  to  be  seen. 
For  the  ethical  motive  is  concealed  by  the  poet,  and  the  hero 
is  painted  with  all  his  brittle  individualism  and  self-seeking.  His 
passions  and  his  selfishness,  gilded  by  fine  traits  of  bravery  and  10 
noble  manners,  interest  the  youth,  interest  us  all.  The  estab- 
lished social  and  moral  order  seems  to  the  ambitious  hero  to 
be  an  obstacle  to  the  unfolding  of  the  charms  of  individuality. 
The  deed  of  violence  gets  done,  and  the  Nemesis  is  aroused. 
Now  his  deed  comes  back  on  the  individual  doer,  and  our  sym- 15 
pathy  turns  against  him  and  we  rejoice  in  his  fall.  Thus  the 
aesthetical  unity  contains  within  it  the  ethical  unity.  The 
lesson  of  the  great  poet  or  novelist  is  taken  to  heart,  whereas 
the  ethical  announcement  by  itself  might  have  failed,  especially 
with  the  most  self-active  and  aspiring  of  the  pupils.  Aristotle  20 
pointed  out  in  his  Poetics  this  advantage  of  the  aesthetic  unity, 
which  Plato  in  his  Republic  seems  to  have  missed.  Tragedy 
purges  us  of  our  passions,  to  use  Aristotle's  expression,  because 
we  identify  our  own  wrong  inclinations  with  those  of  the  hero, 
and  by  sympathy  we  suffer  with  him  and  see  our  intended  deed  25 
returned  upon  us  with  tragic  effect,  and  are  thereby  cured. 

Your  Committee  has  dwelt  upon  the  aesthetic  side  of  liter- 
ature in  this  explicit  manner  because  they  believe  that  the 
general  tendency  in  elementary  schools  is  to  neglect  the 
literary  art  for  the  literary  formalities  which  concern  the  30 
mechanical  material  rather  than  the  spiritual  form.  Those 
formal  studies  should  not  be  discontinued,  but  subordinated  to 
the  higher  study  of  literature. 

Your  Committee  reserves  the  subject  of  language  lessons, 
composition  writing,  and  what  relates  to  the  child's  expression  35 
of   ideas  in   writing,  for   consideration   under  Part  3  of   this 
Report,  treating  of  programme. 


52  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN 

B.  Arithmetic 

Side  by  side  with  language  study  is  the  study  of  mathematics 
in  the  schools,  claiming  the  second  place  in  importance  of  all 
studies.  It  has  been  pointed  out  that  mathematics  concerns 
the  laws  of  time  and  space — their  structural  form,  so  to  speak — 
5  and  hence  that  it  formulates  the  logical  conditions  of  all  matter 
both  in  rest  and  in  motion.  Be  this  as  it  may,  the  high  posi- 
tion of  mathematics  as  the  science  of  all  quantity  is  universally 
acknowledged.  The  elementary  branch  of  mathematics  is  arith- 
metic, and  this  is  studied  in  the  primary  and  grammar  schools 

lofrom  six  to  eight  years,  or  even  longer.  The  relation  of  arith- 
metic to  the  whole  field  of  mathematics  has  been  stated  (by 
Comte,  Howison,  and  others)  to  be  that  of  the  final  step  in  a 
process  of  calculation  in  which  results  are  stated  numerically. 
There  are  branches  that  develop  or  derive  quantitative  func- 

15  tions:  say  geometry  for  spatial  forms,  and  mechanics  for  move- 
ment and  rest  and  the  forces  producing  them.  Other  branches 
transform  these  quantitative  functions  into  such  forms  as  may 
be  calculated  in  actual  numbers ;  namely,  algebra  in  its  common 
or  lower  form,  and  in  its  higher  form  as  the  differential  and 

20  integral  calculus,  and  the  calculus  of  variations.  Arithmetic 
evaluates  or  finds  the  numerical  value  for  the  functions  thus 
deduced  and  transformed.  The  educational  value  of  arith- 
metic is  thus  indicated  both  as  concerns  its  psychological  side 
and  its  objective  practical  uses  in  correlating  man  with  the 

25  world  of  nature.  In  this  latter  respect  as  furnishing  the  key 
to  the  outer  world  in  so  far  as  the  objects  of  the  latter  are  a 
matter  of  direct  enumeration, — capable  of  being  counted, — it  is 
the  first  great  step  in  the  conquest  of  nature.  It  is  the  first 
tool  of  thought  that  man  invents  in  the  work  of  emancipating 

30  himself  from  thraldom  to  external  forces.  For  by  the  com- 
mand of  number  he  learns  to  divide  and  conquer.  He  can 
proportion  one  force  to  another,  and  concentrate  against  an 
obstacle  precisely  what  is  needed  to  overcome  it.  Number  also 
makes  possible  all  the  other  sciences  of  nature  which  depend  on 

35  exact  measurement  and  exact  record  of  phenomena  as  to  the 


ON  CORRELATION   OF  STUDIES.  53 

following  items:  order  of  succession,  date,  duration,  locality, 
environment,  extent  of  sphere  of  influence,  number  of  mani- 
festations, number  of  cases  of  intermittence.  All  these  can  be 
defined  accurately  only  by  means  of  number.  The  educa- 
tional value  of  a  branch  of  study  that  furnishes  the  indispen-  5 
sable  first  step  toward  all  science  of  nature  is  obvious.  But 
psychologically  its  importance  further  appears  in  this,  that 
it  begins  with  an  important  step  in  analysis;  namely,  the 
detachment  of  the  idea  of  quantity  from  the  concrete  whole 
which  includes  quality  as  well  as  quantity.  To  count,  one  10 
drops  the  qualitative  and  considers  only  the  quantitative 
aspect.  So  long  as  the  individual  differences  (which  are  quali- 
tative in  so  far  as  they  distinguish  one  object  from  another)  are 
considered,  the  objects  cannot  be  counted  together.  When 
counted,  the  distinctions  are  dropped  out  of  sight  as  indif-15 
ferent.  As  counting  is  the  fundamental  operation  of  arith- 
metic, and  all  other  arithmetical  operations  are  simply  devices 
for  speed  by  using  remembered  countings  instead  of  going 
through  the  detailed  work  again  each  time,  the  hint  is  furnished 
the  teacher  for  the  first  lessons  in  arithmetic.  This  hint  20 
has  been  generally  followed  out  and  the  child  set  at  work  at 
first  upon  the  counting  of  objects  so  much  alike  that  the 
qualitative  difference  is  not  suggested  to  him.  He  constructs 
gradually  his  tables  of  addition,  subtraction,  and  multiplica- 
tion, and  fixes  them  in  his  memory.  Then  he  takes  his  next  25 
higher  step,  namely  the  apprehension  of  the  fraction.  This  is 
an  expressed  ratio  of  two  numbers,  and  therefore  a  much  more 
complex  thought  than  he  has  met  with  in  dealing  with  the 
simple  numbers.  In  thinking  five-sixths  he  first  thinks  five 
and  then  six,  and  holding  these  two  in  mind  thinks  the  result  30 
of  the  first  modified  by  the  second.  Here  are  three  steps 
instead  of  one,  and  the  result  is  not  a  simple  number  but  an 
inference  resting  on  an  unperformed  operation.  This  psycho- 
logical analysis  shows  the  reason  for  the  embarrassment  of  the 
child  on  his  entrance  upon  the  study  of  fractions  and  the  other  35 
operations  that  imply  ratio.  The  teacher  finds  all  his  resources 
in  the  way  of  method  drawn  upon  to  invent  steps  and  half  steps, 


54  REPORT  OF   THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

to  aid  the  pupil  to  make  continuous  progress  here.  All  these 
devices  of  method  consist  in  steps  by  which  the  pupil 
descends  to  the  simple  number  and  returns  to  the  complex. 
He  turns  one  of  the  terms  into  a  qualitative  unit  and  thus  is 
5  enabled  to  use  the  other  as  a  simple  number.  The  pupil  takes 
the  denominator,  for  example,  and  makes  clear  his  conception 
of  one-sixth  as  his  qualitative  unit,  then  five-sixths  is  as  clear 
to  him  as  five  oxen.  But  he  has  to  repeat  this  return  from 
ratio  to  simple  numbers  in  each  of  the  elementary  operations — 

10  addition,  subtraction,  multiplication,  and  division,  and  in  the 
reduction  of  fractions — and  finds  the  road  long  and  tedious  at 
best.  In  the  case  of  decimal  fractions  the  psychological  process 
is  more  complex  still;  for  the  pupil  has  given  him  one  of  the 
terms,  the  numerator,  from  which  he  must  mentally  deduce 

15  the  denominator  from  the  position  of  the  decimal  point.  This 
doubles  the  work  of  reading  and  recognizing  the  fractional 
number.  But  it  makes  addition  and  subtraction  of  fractions 
nearly  as  easy  as  that  of  simple  numbers  and  assists  also  in 
multiplication   of   fractions.     But   division    of    decimals   is   a 

20  much  more  complex  operation  than  that  of  common  fractions. 

The  want  of  a  psychological  analysis  of  these  processes  has 

led  many  good  teachers  to  attempt  decimal  fractions  with 

their  pupils  before  taking  up  common  fraction/     In  the  end 

they  have  been  forced  to  make  introductory  ^teps  to  aid  the 

25  pupil  and  in  these  steps  to  introduce  the  theory  of  the  com- 
mon fraction.     They  have  by  this  refuted  their  own  theory. 

Besides  (a)  simple  numbers  and  the  four  operations  with 
them,  (l?)  fractions  common  and  decimal,  there  is  {c)  a  third 
step  in  number,  namely  the  theory  of  powers  and  roots.     It  is 

30  a  further  step  in  ratio,  namely  the  relation  of  a  simple  number 
to  itself  as  power  and  root.  The  mass  of  material  which  fills 
the  arithmetic  used  in  the  elementar>'  school  consists  of  two 
kinds  of  examples,  first,  those  wherein  there  is  a  direct  appli- 
cation of  simple  numbers,  fractions,  and  powers,  and  secondly 

35  the  class  of  examples  involving  operations  in  reaching  numer- 
ical solutions  through  indirect  data  and  consequently  involv- 
ing more  or  less  transformation  of  functions.     Of  this  character 


ON   CORRELATION   OF   STUDIES.  55 

is  most  of  the  so-called  higher  arithmetic  and  such  problems 
in  the  text-book  used  in  the  elementary  schools  as  have,  not 
inappropriately,  been  called  (by  General  Francis  A.  Walker  in 
his  criticism  on  common-school  arithmetic)  numerical  "conun- 
drums."    Their  difficulty   is  not  found    in  the  strictly  arith-   5 
metical  part  of  the  process  of  the  solution  (the  third  phase 
above  described),  but  rather  in  the  transformation  of  the  quan- 
titative function  given  into  the  function  that  can  readily  be 
calculated    numerically.     The    transformation     of    functions 
belongs  strictly  to   algebra.     Teachers   who    love  arithmetic,  lo 
and  who  have  themselves  success  in  working  out  the  so-called 
numerical  conundrums,  defend  with  much  earnestness  the  cur- 
rent practice  which  uses  so  much  time  for  arithmetic.     They 
see  in  it  a  valuable  training  for  ingenuity  and  logical  analysis, 
and  believe  that  the   industry   which  discovers  arithmetical  15 
ways  of  transforming  the  functions  given  in  such  problems 
into  plain  numerical  operations  of  adding,  subtracting,  multi- 
plying, or  dividing  is  well  bestowed.     On  the  other  hand  the 
critics  of  this  practice  contend  that  there  should  be  no  merely 
formal  drill  in  school  for  its  own  sake,  and  that  there  should  20 
be,  always,  a  substantial  content  to  be  gained.     They  contend 
that  the  work  of  the  pupil  in  transforming  quantitative  func- 
tions  by  arithmetical   methods  is  wasted,  because  the   pupil 
needs  a  more  adequate  expression  than  number  for  this  pur- 
pose; that  this  has  been  discovered  in  algebra,  which  enables  25 
him  to   perform  with  ease  such  quantitative  transformations 
as   puzzle   the    pupil    in    arithmetic.      They   hold,  therefore, 
that    arithmetic    pure   and   simple    should    be    abridged   and 
elementary  algebra  introduced  after  the  numerical  operations 
in  powers,  fractions,  and  simple  numbers  have  been  mastered,  30 
together  with  their  applications  to  the  tables  of  weights  and 
measures  and  to  percentage  and  interest.     In  the  seventh  year 
of  the  elementary  course  there  would  be  taught  equations  of 
the  first  degree  and  the  solution  of  arithmetical  problems  that 
fall  under  proportion  or  the  so-called  "rule  of  three,"  together  35 
with  other  problems  containing  complicated  conditions — those 
in  partnership    for   example.     In  the  eighth  year  quadratic 


56  REPORT   OF  THE  COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

equations  could  be  learned,  and  other  problems  of  higher  arith- 
metic solved  in  a  more  satisfactory  manner  than  by  numerical 
methods.  It  is  contended  that  this  earlier  introduction  of 
algebra,  with  a  sparing  use  of  letters  for  known  quantities, 
5  would  secure  far  more  mathematical  progress  than  is  obtained 
at  present  on  the  part  of  all  pupils,  and  that  it  would  enable 
many  pupils  to  go  on  into  secondary  and  higher  education 
who  are  now  kept  back  on  the  plea  of  lack  of  preparation  in  . 
arithmetic,  the  real  difficulty  in  many  cases  being  a  lack  of  5 

10 ability  to  solve  algebraic  problems  by  an  inferior  method.  i 

Your  Committee  would  report  that  the  practice  of  teaching 
two  lessons  daily  in  arithmetic,  one  styled  "mental"  or  "intel- 
lectual" and  the  other  "written"  arithmetic  (because  its  exer-  { 
cises  are  written  out  with  pencil  or  pen)  is  still  continued  in  5 

15  many  schools.     By  this  device  the  pupil  is  made  to  give  twice  1 
as  much  time  to  arithmetic  as  to  any  other  branch.     It  is  con- 
tended by  the  opponents  of  this  practice,  with  some  show  of 
reason,  that  two  lessons  a  day  in  the  study  of  quantity  have  a^ 
tendency  to  give  the  mind  a  bent  or  set  in  the  direction   of  j 

20 thinking  quantitatively  with  a  corresponding  neglect  of  the 
power  to  observe,  and  to  reflect  upon,  qualitative  and  causal 
aspects.  For  mathematics  does  not  take  account  of  causes, 
but  only  of  equality  and  difference  in  magnitude.  It  is  fur- 
ther objected  that  the  attempt  to  secure  what  is  called  thor- 

25oughness  in  the  branches  taught  in  the  elementary  schools  is; 
often  carried  too  far,  in  fact,  to  such  an  extent  as  to  produce 
arrested  development  (a  sort  of  mental  paralysis)  in  the 
mechanical  and  formal  stages  of  growth.  The  mind  in  that 
case  loses  its  appetite  for  higher  methods  and  wider  general- 

Soizations.  The  law  of  apperception,  we  are  told,  proves  that 
temporary  methods  of  solving  problems  should  not  be  so  thor- 
oughly mastered  as  to  be  used  involuntarily  or  as  a  matter  of 
unconscious  habit,  for  the  reason  that  a  higher  and  a  more 
adequate  method  of  solution  will  then  be  found  more  difficult 

35  to  acquire.  The  more  thoroughly  a  method  is  learned,  the 
more  it  becomes  part  of  the  mind  and  the  greater  the  repug- 
nance of  the  mind  toward  a   new  method.     For  this   reason 


-     ON  CORRELATION   OF  STUDIES.  57 

parents  and  teachers  discourage  young  children  from  the  prac- 
tice of  counting,  on   the  fingers,  believing  that  it  will  cause 
much  trouble  later  to  root  out  this  vicious  habit  and  replace 
it  by  purely  mental  processes.     Teachers  should  be  careful, 
especially  with  precocious  children,  not  to  continue  too  long   5 
in  the  use  of  a  process  that  is  becoming  mechanical;  for  it  is 
already  growing  into  a  second  nature,  and  becoming  a  part  of 
the  unconscious  apperceptive  process  by  which  the  mind  reacts 
against  the  environment,  recognizes  its  presence,  and  explains 
it  to  itself.     The  child  that  has  been  overtrained  in  arithmetic  10 
reacts  apperceptively  against  his  environment  chiefly  by  notic- 
ing its  numerical  relations — he  counts   and    adds;  his  other 
apperceptive  reactions  being  feeble,  he  neglects  qualities  and 
causal  relations.     Another  child  who  has  been  drilled  in  recog- 
nizing colors  apperceives  the  shades  of  color  to  the  neglect  of  15 
all  else.     A  third  child,  excessively  trained  in  form  studies  by 
the  constant  use  of  geometric  solids  and   much  practice  in 
looking  for  the  fundamental  geometric  forms  lying  at    the 
basis  of  the  multifarious  objects  that  exist  in  the  world,  will  as 
a  matter  of  course  apperceive  geometric  forms,  ignoring  the  20 
other  phases  of  objects. 

It  is,  certainly,  an  advance  on  immediate  sense-perception  to 
be  able  to  separate  or  analyze  the  concrete,  whole  impression, 
and  consider  the  quantity  apart  by  itself.  But  if  arrested 
mental  growth  takes  place  here  the  result  is  deplorable.  That  25 
such  arrest  may  be  caused  by  too  exclusive  training  in  recog- 
nizing numerical  relations  is  beyond  a  doubt. 

Your  Committee  believes  that,  with  the  right  methods, 
and  a  wise  use  of  time  in  preparing  the  arithmetic  lesson 
in  and  out  of  school,  five  years  are  sufBcient  for  the  study  30 
of  mere  arithmetic — the  five  years  beginning  with  the  sec- 
ond school  year  and  ending  with  the  close  of  the  sixth  year; 
and  that  the  seventh  and  eighth  years  should  be  given  to  the 
algebraic  method  of  dealing  with  those  problems  that  involve 
difficulties  in  the  transformation  of  quantitative  indirect  func-35 
Ntions  into  numerical  or  direct  quantitative  data. 

Your  Committee,  however,  does  not  wish  to  be  understood 


$8  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN 

as  recommending  the  transfer  of  algebra,  as  It  Is  understood 
and  taught  in  most  secondary  schools,  to  the  seventh  year  on 
even  to  the  eighth  year  of  the  elementary  school.  The  algebra 
course  in  the  secondary  school,  as  taught  to  pupils  in  theic 
5  fifteenth  year  of  age,  very  properly  begins  with  severe  exer^ 
cises  with  a  view  to  discipline  the  pupil  in  analyzing  complete 
literate  expressions  at  sight  and  to  make  him  able  to  recognize 
at  once  the  factors  that  are  contained  in  such  combinations  of 
quantities.     The    proposed    seventh-grade   algebra   must   use 

lo  letters  for  the  unknown  quantities  and  retain  the  numerical 
form  of  the  known  quantities,  using  letters  for  these  very 
rarely,  except  to  exhibit  the  general  form  of  solution  or  what, 
if  stated  in  words,  becomes  a  so-called  "rule"  in  arithmetic 
This  species  of  algebra  has  the  character  of  an  introduction  or 

15  transitional  step  to  algebra  proper.  The  latter  should  be 
taught  thoroughly  in  the  secondary  school.  Formerly  it  wasj 
a  common  practice  to  teach  elementary  algebra  of  this  sort  inj 
the  preparatory  schools  and  reserve  for  the  college  a  study  oi 
algebra  proper.     But  in  this  case  there  was  often  a  neglect  o; 

20  sufficient  practice  in  factoring  literate  quantities,  and  as  a  conse 
quence  the  pupil  suffered  embarrassment  In  his  more  advanced 
mathematics,  for  example  In  analytical  geometry,  the  differ 
ential  calculus,  and  mechanics.  The  proposition  of  youi 
Committee    is   intended    to    remedy   the   two   evils    already 

25  named :  first  to  aid  the  pupils  in  the  elementary  school  to 
solve,  by  a  higher  method,  the  more  difficult  problems  that 
now  find  place  in  advanced  arithmetic;  and  secondly,  to  pre. 
pare  the  pupil  for  a  thorough  course  in  pure  algebra  in  the 
secondary  school. 

30  Your  Committee  is  of  the  opinion  that  the  so-called  menta 
arithmetic  should  be  made  to  alternate  with  written  arithmetic 
for  two  years  and  that  there  should  not  be  two  daily  lessons 
in  this  subject. 

C.  Geography 

The  leading  branch  of  the  seven  liberal  arts  was  grammar; 
35  being  the  first  of  the  Trivimn  (grammar,  rhetoric,  and  logic).! 


ON  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  59 

Arithmetic,  however,  led  the  second  division,  the  Quadru 
vuirn  (arithmetic,  geometry,  music,  and  astronomy).  We  have 
glanced  at  the  reasons  for  the  place  of  grammar  as  leading 
the  humane  studies  as  well  as  for  the  place  of  arithmetic  as 
leading  the  nature  studies.  Following  arithmetic  as  the  second  5 
study  in  importance  among  the  branches  that  correlate  man  to 
nature  is  geography.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that  the  old 
quadrivium  of  the  Middle  Ages  included  geography,  under  the 
title  of  geometry,  as  the  branch  following  arithmetic  in  the  enu- 
meration ;  the  subject  matter  of  their  so-called  *'geometry"being  lo 
chiefly  an  abridgment  of  Pliny's  geography,  to  which  were 
added  a  few  definitions  of  geometric  forms,  something  like  the 
primary  course  in  geometric  solids  in  our  elementary  schools. 
So  long  as  there  has  been  elementary  education  there  has  been 
something  of  geography  included.  The  Greek  education  laid  15 
stress  on  teaching  the  second  book  of  Homer  containing  the 
Catalogue  of  the  Ships  and  a  brief  mention  of  the  geography 
and  history  of  all  the  Greek  tribes  that  took  part  in  the  Trojan 
War.  History  remains  unseparated  from  geography  and 
geometry  in  the  Middle  Ages.  Geography  has  preserved  this  20 
comprehensiveness  of  meaning  as  a  branch  of  the  study  in  the 
elementary  schools  down  to  the  present  day.  After  arith- 
metic, which  treats  of  the  abstract  or  general  conditions  of 
material  existence,  comes  geography  with  a  practical  study  of 
man's  material  habitat  and  its  relations  to  him.  It  is  not  a  25 
simple  science  by  itself,  like  botany  or  geology  or  astronomy, 
but  a  collection  of  sciences  levied  upon  to  describe  the  earth  as 
the  dwelling  place  of  man  and  to  explain  something  of  its  more 
prominent  features.  About  one-fourth  of  the  material  relates 
strictly  to  the  geography,  about  one-half  to  the  inhabitants,  30 
their  manners,  customs,  institutions,  industries,  productions, 
and  the  remaining  one-fourth  to  items  drawn  from  the  sciences 
of  mineralogy,  meteorology,  botany,  zoology,  and  astronomy. 
This  predominance  of  the  human  feature  in  a  study  ostensibly 
relating  to  physical  nature,  your  Committee  considers  necessary  35 
and  entirely  justifiable.  The  child  commences  with  what  is 
nearest  to  his  interests,  and  proceeds  gradually  toward  what  is 


6o  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE  OF  FIFTEEN 

remote  and  to  be  studied  for  its  own  sake.  It  is  therefore  a 
mistake  to  suppose  that  the  first  phase  of  geography  presented 
to  the  child  should  be  the  process  of  continent  formation.  He 
must  begin  with  the  natural  differences  of  climate  and  lands 

sand  waters  and  obstacles  that  separate  peoples,  and  study  the 
methods  by  which  man  strives  to  equalize  or  overcome  thes 
differences  by  industry  and  commerce,  to  unite  all  places  and  a 
people,  and  make  it  possible  for  each  to  share  in  the  production 
of  all.     The  industrial  and  commercial  idea  is  therefore  th 

lo  first  central  idea  in  the  study  of  geography  in  the  elementar 
schools.     It  leads  directly  to  the  natural  elements  of  differenc 
in  climate,  soil,  and  productions,  and  also  to  those  in  rac 
religion,  political  status,  and  occupations  of  the  inhabitant*^' 
with  a   view  to   explain    the   grounds   and   reasons   for  this 

15  counter-process  of  civilization  which  struggles  to  overcome  the 
differences.  Next  comes  the  deeper  inquiry  into  the  process 
of  continent  formation,  the  physical  struggle  between  the 
process  of  upheaving  or  upbuilding  of  continents  and  that  of 
their  obliteration  by  air  and  water;  the  explanation  of  the 

20  mountains,  valleys,  and  plains,  the  islands,  volcanic  action,  the 
winds,  the  rain-distribution.  But  the  study  of  cities,  their 
location,  the  purposes  they  serve  as  collecting,  manufacturing, 
and  distributing  centers,  leads  most  directly  to  the  immediate 
purpose  of  geography  in  the  elementary  school.     From  this 

25  beginning,  and   holding  to   it  as  a   permanent   interest,  the 
inquiry  into  causes  and  conditions  proceeds  concentrically  to 
the  sources  of  the  raw  materials,  the  methods  of  their  produ 
tion  and  the  climatic,  geologic,  and  other  reasons  that  explai: 
their  location  and  their  growth. 

30  In  recent  years,  especially  through  the  scientific  study  of 
physical  geography,  the  processes  that  go  to  the  formation  of 
climate,  soil,  and  general  configuration  of  land  masses  have 
been  accurately  determined,  and  the  methods  of  teaching  so 
simplified  that  it  is  possible  to  lead  out  from  the  central  idea 

35  mentioned  to  the  physical  explanations  of  the  elements  of 
geographical  difference  quite  early  in  the  course  of  study. 
Setting  out  from  the  idea  of  the  use  made  of  the  earth  by 


:o 

1 


J 


ON  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  6l 

civilization,  the  pupil  in  the  fifth  and  sixth  years  of  his  schooling 
(at  the  age  of  eleven  or  twelve)  may  extend  his  inquiries  quite 
profitably  as  far  as  the  physical  explanations  of  land-shapes 
and  climates.  In  the  seventh  and  eighth  year  of  school  much 
more  may  be  done  in  this  direction.  But  it  is  believed  that  5 
the  distinctively  human  interest  connected  with  geography  in 
the  first  years  of  its  study  should  not  yield  to  the  purely 
scientific  one  of  physical  processes  until  the  pupil  has  taken 
up  the  study  of  history. 

The  educational  value  of  geography,  as  it  is  and  has  been  in  10 
elementary  schools,  is  obviously  very  great.     It  makes  possible 
something  like  accuracy  in  the  picturing  of  distant  places  and 
events  and  removes  a  large  tract  of    mere  superstition  from 
the  mind.     In  the  days  of  newspaper  reading  one's  stock  of 
geographical  information  is  in  constant  requisition.     A  war  on  15 
the  opposite  side  of  the  globe  is  followed  with  more  interest 
in  this  year  than  a  war  near  our  own  borders  before  the  era  of 
the  telegraph.     The  general  knowledge  of  the  locations  and 
boundaries  of  nations,  of  their  status  in  civilization  and  their 
natural  advantages  for  contributing  to  the  world  market,  is  20 
of  great  use  to  the  citizen  in  forming  correct  ideas  from  his 
daily  reading. 

The  educational  value  of  geography  is  even  more  apparent 
if  we  admit  the  claims  of  those  who  argue  that  the  present 
epoch  is  the  beginning  of  an  era  in  which  public  opinion  is  25 
organized  into  a  ruling  force  by  the  agency  of  periodicals  and 
books.  Certainly  neither  the  newspaper  nor  the  book  can 
influence  an  illiterate  people:  they  can  do  little  to  form 
opinions  where  the  readers  have  no  knowledge  of  geography. 

As  to  the  psychological  value  of  geography  little  need  be  30 
said.  It  exercises  in  manifold  ways  the  memory  of  forms  and 
the  imagination ;  it  brings  into  exercise  the  thinking  power  in 
tracing  back  toward  unity  the  various  series  of  causes.  What 
educative  value  there  is  in  geology,  meteorology,  zoolog)^ 
ethnology,  economics,  history,  and  politics  is  to  be  found  in  35 
the  more  profound  study  of  geography,  and,  to  a  proportionate 
extent,  in  the  study  of  its  merest  elements. 


62  REPORT  OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN 

Your  Committee  is   of  the  opinion  that  there  has  been  a 
vast  improvement  in  the  methods  of  instruction  in  this  branch 
in  recent  years,  due  ii)  large  measure  to  the  geographical  soci- 
eties of   this  and  other  countries.     At  first  there  prevailed 
5  what  might  be  named  sailor  geography.     The  pupil  was  coi-q.^ 
pelled  to  memorize  all  the  capes  and  headlands,  bays  and  hai 
bors,  mouths  of  rivers,  islands,  sounds,  and  straits  around  th^ 
world.     He  enlivened  this  to  some  extent  by  brief  mention  d 
the  curiosities  and  oddities  in  the  way  of  cataracts,  water-gap^ 

zo caves,  strange  animals,  public  buildings,  picturesque  costumes 
national  exaggerations,  and  such  matters  as  would  furnish 
good  themes  for  sailors'  yarns.  Little  or  nothing  was  taught  t^ 
give  unity  to  the  isolated  details  furnished  in  endless  number, 
It  was  an  improvement  on  this  when  the  method  of  memori^ 

iSing  capital  cities  and  political  boundaries  succeeded.  Witl| 
this  came  the  era  of  map  drawing.  The  study  of  watersheds 
and  commercial  routes,  of  industrial  productions  and  centers 
of  manufacture  and  commerce,  has  been  adopted  in  the  better 
class  of  schools.     Instruction  in  geography  is  growing  better 

20 by  the  constant  introduction  of  new  devices  to  make  plain 
and  intelligible  the  determining  influence  of  physical  causes  in 
producing  the  elements  of  difference  and  the  counter-process 
of  industry  and  commerce  by  which  each  difference  is  rendered 
of  use  to  the  whole  world  and  each  locality  made  a  partici 

25  pator  in  the  productions  of  all. 

D.  History 

The  next  study,  ranked  in  order  of  value,  for  the  elementan 
school  is  History.  But,  as  will  be  seen,  the  value  of  history 
both  practically  and  psychologically,  is  less  in  the  beginninj 
and  greater  at  the  end  than  geography.     For  it  relates  to  th( 

30  institutions  of  men,  and  especially  to  the  political  state  and  ifc 
evolution.  While  biography  narrates  the  career  of  the  indi 
vidual,  civil  history  records  the  careers  of  nations.  Th( 
nation  has  been  compared  to  the  individual  by  persons  intei 
ested  in  the  educational  value  of  history.     Man  has  two  selve! 

35  they  say,  the  individual  self,  and  the  collective  self  of  tl 


ON  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  63 

organized  state  or  nation.     The  study  of  history  is,  then,  the 
study  of  this  larger,    corporate,   social,  and   civil  self.     The 

;  importance  of  this  idea  is  thus  brought  out  more  clearly  in  its 
educational  significance.  For  to  learn  this  civil  self  is  to  learn 
the  substantial  condition  which  makes  possible  the  existence  5 
of  civilized  man  in  all  his  other  social  combinations — the 
family,  the  Church,  and  the  manifold  associated  activities  of 
civil  society.  For  the  state  protects  these  combinations  from 
destruction  by  violence.  It  defines  the  limits  of  individual 
and  associated  effort,  within  which  each  endeavor  re-enforces  10 
the  endeavors  of  all,  and  it  uses  the  strength  of  the  whole 
nation  to  prevent  such  actions  as  pass  beyond  these  safe 
limits  and  tend  to  collision  with  the  normal  action  of  the  other 
individuals  and  social  units.  Hobbes  called  the  state  a  Levi- 
athan, to  emphasize  its  stupendous  individuality  and  organized  15 
self-activity.  Without  this,  he  said,  man  lives  in  a  state  of 
* 'constant  war,  fear,  poverty,  filth,  ignorance,  and  wretched- 
ness; within  the  state  dwell  peace,  security,  riches,  science, 
and  happiness."  The  state  is  the  collective  man  who  "makes 
possible  the  rational  development  of  the  individual  man,  like  20 
a  mortal  God,  subduing  his  caprice  and  passion  and  compelling 
obedience  to  law,  developing  the  ideas  of  justice,  virtue^  and 
religion,  creating  property  and  ownership,  nurture  and  educa- 
tion."    The  education  of  the  child  into  a  knowledge  of  this 

(  higher   self   begins  early  within    the  nurture    of   the  family.  25 
The  child  sees  a  policeman  or  some  town  officer,  some  public 

i  building,  a  court  house  or  a  jail;  he  sees  or  hears  of  an  act  of 
violence,  a  case  of  robbery  or  murder  followed  by  arrest  of  the 

I  guilty.     The  omnipresent  higher  self,  which  has  been  invisible 
hitherto,  now  becomes  visible  to  him  in  its  symbols  and  still  30 
more  in  its  acts. 
History  in  school,  it  is  contended,  should  be   the   special 

1  branch  for  education  in  the  duties  of  citizenship.     There  is 

'  ground   for  this  claim.     History  gives  a  sense  of  belonging 
to  a  higher  social  unity  which  possesses  the  right  of  absolute  35 
control  over  person  and  property  in  the  interest  of  the  safety 
of  the  whole.     This,  of  course,  is  the  basis  of  citizenship ;  the 


64  REPORT  OF  THE   COMMITTEE    OF  FIFTEEN 

individual  must  feel  this  or  see  this  solidarity  of  the  state  anci 
recognize  its  supreme  authority.  But  history  shows  the  colli- 
sions  of  nations,  and  the  victory  of  one  political  ideal  accom-j 
panied  by  the  defeat  of  another.  History  reveals  an  evolutioii 
5  of  forms  of  government  that  are  better  and  better  adapted  tgj 
permit  individual  freedom,  and  the  participation  of  all  citizenj 
in  the  administration  of  the  government  itself. 

People  who  make   their  own  government  have  a    specia 
interest  in  the  spectacle  of  political  evolution  as  exhibited  in 

10  history.  But  it  must  be  admitted  that  this  evolution  has  not 
been  well  presented  by  popular  historians.  Take,  for  instance, 
the  familiar  example  of  old-time  pedagogy,  wherein  the  Romanl 
republic  was  conceived  as  a  freer  government  than  the  Roman 
empire   that    followed    it,  by  persons   apparently   misled   by 

IS  the  ideas  of  representative  self-government  associated  w^th  th«l 
word  republic.     It  was  the  beginning  of  a  new  epoch  when  this 
illusion  was  dispelled,  and  the  college  student  became  aware 
of  the  true  Roman  meaning  of  republic,  namely,  the  supremacy 
of  an  oligarchy  on  the  Tiber  that  ruled  distant  provinces  i 

2o  Spain,  Gaul,  Asia  Minor,  Germany,  and  Africa,  for  its  selfish 
ends  and  with  an  ever-increasing  arrogance.  The  people  at 
home  in  Rome,  not  having  a  share  in  the  campaigns  on  the 
borderland,  did  not  appreciate  the  qualities  of  the  great  leaders 
who,  like  Caesar,  subdued  the  nations  by  forbearance,  mag. 

25nanimity,  trust,  and  the  recognition  of  a  sphere  of  freedom 
secured  to  the  conquered  by  the  Roman  civil  laws,  which  were 
rigidly  enforced  by  the  conqueror,  as  much  as  by  the  violence  oi 
arms.  The  change  from  republic  to  empire  meant  the  final  sub. 
ordination  of  this  tyrannical  Roman  oligarchy,  and  the  recog- 

3onition  of  the  rights  of  the  provinces  to  Roman  freedom.  Thii 
illustration  shows  how  easily  a  poor  teaching  of  history  may 
pervert  its  good  influence  or  purpose  into  a  bad  one.  For  the 
Roman  monarchy  under  the  empire  secured  a  degree  of  freedom 
never  before  attained  under  the  republic,  in  spite  of  the  electioii 

35  of  such  tyrants  as  Nero  and  Caligula  to  the  imperial  purple. 
The  civil  service  went  on  as  usual  administering  the  affairs  o 
distant  countries,  educating  them  in  Roman  jurisprudence,  an 


ON  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  65 

cultivating  a  love  for  accumulating  private  property.  Those 
countries  had  before  lived  communistically  after  the  style  of 
the  tribe  or  at  best  of  the  village  community.  Roman  private 
property  in  land  gave  an  impulse  to  the  development  of  free 
individuality  such  as  had  always  been  impossible  under  the  5 
social  stage  of  development  known  as  the  village  community. 

To  teach  history  properly  is  to  dispel  this  shallow  illusion 
which  flatters  individualism,  and  to  open  the  eyes  of  the  pupil 
to  the  true  nature  of  freedom,  namely  the  freedom  through 
obedience  to  just  laws  enforced  by  a  strong  government.  10 

Your  Committee  has  made  this  apparent  digression  for  the 
sake  ef  a  more  explicit  statement  of  its  conviction  of  the 
importance  of  teaching  history  in  a  different  spirit  from  that 
of  abstract  freedom,  which  sometimes  means  anarchy,  although 
they  admit  the  possibility  of  an  opposite  extreme,  the  danger  15; 
of  too  little  stress  on  the  progressive  element  in  the  growth 
of  nations  and  its  manifestation  in  new  and  better  political 
devices  for  representing  all  citizens  without  weakening  the 
central  power. 

That  the  history  of  one's  own  nation  is  to  be  taught  in  the20' 
elementary  school  seems  fixed  by  common  consent.     United 
States  history  includes  first  a  sketch  of  the  epoch  of  discoveries 
and  next  of  the  epoch  of  colonization.     This  fortunately  suits 
the  pedagogic  requirements.     For  the  child  loves  to  approach 
the  stern  realities  of  a  firmly  established  civilization  through  25, 
its  stages  of  growth  by  means  of  individual  enterprise.     Here 
is  the  use  of  biography  as  introduction  to  history.     It  treats 
of  exceptional  individuals  whose  lives  bring  them  in  one  way  or 
another  into  national  or  even  world-historical  relations.     They 
throw  light  on  the  nature  and  necessity  of  governments,  and  30 
arc-in  turn  illuminated  by  the  light  thrown  back  on  them  by 
the  institutions'  which  they  promote  or  hinder.     The  era  of 
semi-private  adventure  with  which  American  history  begins  is 
admirably  adapted  for  study  by  the  pupil  in  the  elementary 
stage  of  his  education.     So  too  the  next  epoch,  that  of  coloni-3S 
zation.     The  pioneer  is  a  degree  nearer  to  civilization  than  is 
the  explorer  and  discoverer.     In  the  colonial  history  the  puoil 


66  REPORT  OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

interests  himself  in  the  enterprise  of  aspiring  individualities,  in 
their  conquest  over  obstacles  of  climate  and  soil;  their  con- 
flicts with  the  aboriginal  population ;  their  choice  of  land  for 
settlement;  the  growth  of  their  cities;  above  all,  their  several 
5  attempts  and  final  success  in  forming  a  constitution  securing' 
local  self-government.  An  epoch  of  growing  interrelation  of 
the  colonies  succeeds,  a  tendency  to  union  on  a  large  scale 
due  to  the  effect  of  European  wars  which  involved  England, 
France,  and  other  countries,  and  affected  the  relations  of  their 

lo  colonies  in  America.  This  epoch  too  abounds  in  heroic  per- 
sonalities, like  Wolfe,  Montcalm,  and  Washington,  and  perilous 
adventures,  especially  in  the  Indian  warfare. 

The  fourth  epoch  is  the  Revolution,  by  which  the  Colonies 
through  joint  effort  secured  their  independence  and  afterward 

15  their  union  in  a  nation.  The  subject  grows  rapidly  more  com- 
plex and  tasks  severely  the  powers  of  the  pupils  in  the  eighth 
year  of  the  elementary  school.  The  formation  of  the  Consti- 
tution, and  a  brief  study  of  the  salient  features  of  the  Con- 
stitution   itself,  conclude   the   study   of   the   portion   of   the 

20  history  of  the  United  States  that  is  sufificiently  remote  to 
be  treated  after  the  manner  of  an  educational  classic.  Every- 
thing up  to  this  point  stands  out  in  strong  individual  out- 
lines and  is  admirably  fitted  for  that  elementary  course  of 
study.     Beyond  this  point,  the  War  of  181 2  and  the  War  of 

25  the  Rebellion,  together  with  the  political  events  that  led  to  it, 
are  matters  of  memory  with  the  present  generation  of  parents 
and  grandparents,  and  are  consequently  not  so  well  fitted  for 
intensive  study  in  school  as  the  already  classic  period  of  our 
history.     But  these  later  and  latest  epochs  may  be  and  will  be 

30  read  at  home  not  only  in  the  text-book  on  history  used  in  the 
schools,  but  also  in  the  numerous  sketches  that  appear  in  news- 
papers, magazines,  and  in  more  pretentious  shapes.  In  the 
intensive  study  which  should  be  undertaken  of  the  classic 
period  of  our  history,  the  pupil  may  be  taught  the  method 

35  appropriate  to  historical  investigation,  the  many  points  of  view 
from  which  each  event  ought  to  be  considered.  He  should 
leaxn  to  discriminate  between  the  theatrical  show  of  events  and 


ON  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  6/ 

the  solid  influences  that  move  underneath  as  ethical  causes. 
Although  he  is  too  immature  for  very  far-reaching  reflections, 
he  must  be  helped  to  see  the  causal  processes  of  history. 
Armed  with  this  discipline  in  historic  methods,  the  pupil  will 
do  all  of  his  miscellaneous  reading  and  thinking  in  this  province  S 
with  more  adequate  intellectual  reaction  than  was  possible 
before  the  intensive  study  carried  on  in  school. 

The  study  of  the  outlines  of  the  Constitution,  for  ten  or 
fifteen  weeks  in  the  final  year  of  the  elementary  school,  has 
been  found  of  great  educational  value.  Properly  taught,  it  lo 
fixes  the  idea  of  the  essential  threefoldness  of  the  constitution 
of  a  free  government  and  the  necessary  independence  of  each 
constituent  power,  whether  legislative,  judicial,  or  executive. 
This  and  some  idea  of  the  manner  and  mode  of  filling  the 
official  places  in  these  three  departments,  and  of  the  character  15 
of  the  duties  with  which  each  department  is  charged,  lay  foun- 
dations for  an  intelligent  citizenship. 

Besides  this  intensive  study  of  the  history  of  the  United 
States  in  the  seventh  and  eighth  years,  your  Committee  would 
recommend  oral  lessons  on  the  salient  points  of  general  history,  20 
taking  a  full  hour  of  sixty  minutes  weekly — and  preferably  all 
at  one  time — for  the  sake  of  the  more  systematic  treatment  of 
the  subject  of  the  lesson  and  the  deeper  impression  made  on 
the  mind  of  the  pupil. 

E,  Other  branches 

Your  Committee  has  reviewed  the  staple  branches  of  the  25 
elementary  course  of  study  in  the  light  of  their  educational 
scope  and  significance.  Grammar,  literature,  arithrnetic,  geog- 
raphy, and  history  .are  the  five  branches  upon  which  the  dis- 
ciplinary work  of  the  elementary  school  is  concentrated.  Inas- 
much as  reading  is  the  first  of  the  scholastic  arts,  it  is  interesting  30 
to  note  that  the  whole  elementary  course  may  be  described  as 
an  extension  of  the  process  of  learning  the  art  of  reading. 
First  comes  the  mastering  of  the  colloquial  vocabulary  in  printed 
and  script  forms.  Next  come  five  incursions  into  the  special 
vocabularies  required  {a)  in  literature  to  express  the  fine  shades  35 


68  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

of  emotion  and  the  more  subtle  distinctions  of  thought,  {b)  the 
technique  of  arithmetic,  {c)  of  geography,  {d)  of  grammar,  {e) 
of  history. 

In  the  serious  work  of  mastering  these  several  technical 
5  vocabularies  the  pupil  is  assigned  daily  tasks  that  he  must  pre- 
pare by  independent  study.  The  class  exercise  or  recitation  is 
taken  up  with  examining  and  criticising  the  pupil's  oral  state- 
ments of  what  he  has  learned,  especial  care  being  taken  to 
secure  the  pupil's  explanation  of  it  in  his  own  words.     This 

lo  requires  paraphrases  and  definitions  of  the  new  words  and 
phrases  used  in  technical  and  literary  senses,  with  a  view  to 
insure  the  addition  to  the  mind  of  the  new  ideas  corresponding 
to  the  new  words.  The  misunderstandings  are  corrected  and 
the  pupil  set  on  the  way  to  use  more  critical  alertness  in  the 

15  preparation  of  his  succeeding  lessons.  The  pupil  learns  as 
much  by  the  recitations  of  his  fellow-pupils  as  he  learns  from 
the  teacher,  but  not  the  same  things.  He  sees  in  the  imperfect 
statements  of  his  classmates  that  they  apprehended  the  lesson 
with   different    presuppositions   and  consequently  have   seen 

20 some  phases  of  the  subject  that  escaped  his  observation,  while 
they  in  turn  have  missed  points  which  he  had  noticed  quite 
readily.  These  different  points  of  view  become  more  or  less 
his  own,  and  he  may  be  said  to  grow  by  adding  to  his  own 
mind  the  minds  of  others. 

25      It  is  clear  that  there  are  other  branches  of  instruction  that 

may  lay  claim  to  a  place  in  the  course  of  study  of  the  element 

tary  school ;  for  example  the  various  branches  of  natural  science, 

vocal  music,  manual  training,  physical  culture,  drawing,  etc. 

Here  the  question  of  another  method  of  instruction  is  sug- 

30gested.  There  are  lessons  that  require  previous  preparation 
by  the  pupil  himself — there  are  also  lessons  that  may  be 
taken  up  without  such  preparation  and  conducted  by  the  teacher, 
who  leads  the  exercise  and  furnishes  a  large  part  of  the  informa- 
tion to  be  learned,  enlisting  the  aid  of  members  of  the  class  for 

35  the  purpose  of  bringing  home  the  new  material  to  theiractual  ex- 
perience. Besides  these  there  are  mechanical  exercises  for  pur- 
poses of  training,  such  as  drawing,  penmanship,  and  calisthenics. 


ON  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  69 

In  the  first  plac^  there  is  industrial  and  aesthetic  drawing^ 
which  should  have  a  place  in  all  elementary  school  work.  By 
it  is  secured  the  training  of  the  hand  and  eye.  Then,  too, 
drawing  helps  in  all  the  other  branches  that  require  illustra- 
tion. Moreover,  if  used  in  the  study  of  the  great  works  of  art  5 
in  the  way  hereinbefore  mentioned,  it  helps  to  cultivate  the 
taste  and  prepares  the  future  workman  for  a  more  useful  and 
lucrative  career,  inasmuch  as  superior  taste  commands  higher 
wages  in  the  finishing  of  all  goods. 

Natural  science  claims  a  place  in  the  elementary  school  not  10 
so  much  as  a  disciplinary  study  side  by  side  with  grammar, 
arithmetic,  and  history,  as  a  training  in  habits  of  observation 
and  in  the  use  of  the  technique  by  which  such  sciences  are 
expounded.     With  a  knowledge  of  the  technical  terms  and 
some  training  in  the  methods  of  original  investigation  employed  15 
in  the  sciences,  the  pupil  broadens  his  views  of  the  world  and 
greatly  increases  his  capacity  to  acquire  new  knowledge.     For 
the  pupil  who  is  unacquainted  with  the  technique  of  science 
has  to  pass   without  mental  profit    the   numerous   scientific 
allusions .  and    items   of   information   which   more   and   more  20 
abound  in  all  our  literature,  whether  of  an  ephemeral  or   a 
permanent  character.     In  an  age  whose  proudest  boast  is  the 
progress  of  science  in  all  domains,  there   should  be  in   the 
elementary  school,  from  the  first,  a  course  in  the  elements  of 
the  sciences.     And  this  is  quite   possible;    for  each  science 25 
possesses  some  phases  that  lie  very  near  to  the  child's  life. 
These  familiar  topics  furnish  the  doors  through  which  the  child 
enters  the  various  special  departments.     Science,  it  is  claimed, 
is  nothing  if  not  systematic.      Indeed,  science  itself  may  be 
defined  as  the  interpretation  of  each  fact  through  all  other  30 
facts  of  a  kindred  nature.     Admitting  that  this  is  so,  it  is  no 
less  true  that  pedagogic  method  begins  with  the  fragmentary 
knowledge  possessed  by  the  pupil  and  proceeds  to  organize  it 
and  build  it  out  systematically  in  all  directions.     Hence  any 
science  may  be  taken  up  best  on  the  side  nearest  the  experience  35 
of  the  pupil  and  the  investigation  continued  until  the  other 
parts  are  reached.     Thus  the  pedagogical  order  is  not  always 


70  REPORT  OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

the  logical  or  scientific  order.  In  this  respect  it  agrees  with 
the  order  of  discovery,  which  is  usually  something  quite 
different  from  the  logical  order,  for  that  is  the  last  thing  dis- 
covered. The  natural  sciences  have  two  general  divisions:  one 
5  relating  to  inorganic  matter,  as  physics  and  chemistry,  and  one 
relating  to  organic,  as  botany  and  zoology.  There  should  be  a 
spiral  course  in  natural  science,  commencing  each  branch  with 
the  most  interesting  phases  to  the  child.  A  first  course 
should  be  given  in  botany,  zoology,  and  physics,  so  as  to  treat 

loof  the  structure  and  uses  of  familiar  plants  and  animals,  and 
the  explanation  of  physical  phenomena  as  seen  in  the  child's 
playthings,  domestic  machines,  etc.  A  second  course  covering 
the  same  subjects,  but  laying  more  stress  on  classification  and 
functions,  will  build  on  to  the  knowledge  already  acquired  from 

15  the  former  lessons  and  from  his  recently  acquired  experience. 
A  third  course  of  weekly  lessons,  conducted  by  the  teacher  as 
before  in  a  conversational  style,  with  experiments  and  with  a 
comparison  of  the  facts  of  observation  already  in  the  possession 
of  the  children,will  go  far  to  helping  them  to  an  acquisition  of  the 

20  results  of  natural  science.    Those  of  the  children  specially  gifted 

for  observation  in  some  one  or  more  departments  of  nature  will 

be  stimulated  and  encouraged  to  make  the  most  of  their  gifts. 

In  the  opinion  of  your  Committee  there  should  be  set  apart 

a  full  hour  each  week  for  drawing  and  the  same  amount  for 

25  oral  lessons  in  natural  science. 

The  oral  lessons  in  history  have  already  been  mentioned. 
The  spiral  course,  found  useful  in  natural  science  because  of 
the  rapid  change  in  capacity  of  comprehension  by  the  pupil 
from  his  sixth  to  his  fourteenth  year,  will  also  be  best  for  the 

30  history  course,  which  will  begin  with  biographical  adventures 
of  interest  to  the  child,  and  possessing  an  important  historical 
bearing.  These  will  proceed  from  the  native  land  first  to  Eng- 
land, the  parent  country,  and  then  to  the  classic  civilizations 
(Greece  and  Rome  being,  so  to  speak,  the  grandparent  coun- 

35  tries  of  the  American  colonies).  These  successive  courses  of 
oral  lessons  adapted  respectively  to  the  child's  capacity  will  do 
much  to  make  the  child  well  informed  on  this   topic.     Oral 


ON   CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  71 

lessons  should  never  be  mere  lectures,  but  more  like  Socratic 
dialogues,  building  up  a  systematic  knowledge  partly  from 
what  is  already  known,  partly  by  new  investigations,  and  partly 
by  comparison  of  authorities. 

The  best  argument  in  favor  of  weekly  oral  lessons  in  natural  5 
science  and  general  history  is  the  actual  experiences  of  teachers 
who  have  for  some  time  used  the  plan.  It  has  been  found 
that  the  lessons  in  botany,  zoology,  and  physics  give  the  pupil 
much  aid  in  learning  his  geography  and  other  lessons  relating 
to  nature,  while  the  history  lessons  assist  very  much  his  com- 10 
prehension  of  literature,  and  add  interest  to  geography. 

It  is  understood  by  your  Committee  that  the  lessons  in 
physiology  and  hygiene  (with  special  reference  to  the  effects 
of  stimulants  and  narcotics)  required  by  State  laws  should 
be  included  in  this  oral  course  in  natural  science.  Manual  15 
training,  so  far  as  the  theory  and  use  of  the  tools  for  working 
in  wood  and  iron  are  concerned,  has  just  claims  on  the^elemen- 
tary  school  for  a  reason  similar  to  that  which  admits  natural 
science.  From  science  have  proceeded  useful  inventions  for 
the  aid  of  all  manner  of  manufactures  and  transportation.  20 
The  child  of  to-day  lives  in  a  world  where  machinery  is  con- 
stantly at  his  hand.  A  course  of  training  in  wood-  and  iron- 
work, together  with  experimental  knowledge  of  physics  or 
natural  philosophy,  makes  it  easy  for  him  to  learn  the  manage- 
ment of  such  machines.  Sewing  and  cookery  have  not  the  25 
same  but  stronger  claims  for  a  place  in  school.  One-half  day 
in  each  week  for  one-half  a  year  each  in  the  seventh  and  eighth 
grades  will  suffice  for  manual  training,  the  sewing  and  cookery 
being  studied  by  the  girls,  and  the  wood-  and  iron-work  by  the 
boys.  It  should  be  mentioned,  however,  that  the  advocates  30 
of  manual  training  in  iron-and  wood-work  recommend  these 
branches  for  secondary  schools,  because  of  the  greater  maturity 
of  body,  and  the  less  likelihood  to  acquire  wrong  habits  of 
manipulation,  in  the  third  period  of  four  years  of  school. 

Vocal  m^usic  has  long  since  obtained  a  well-established  place  35 
in  all  elementary  schools.     The  labors  of  two  generations  of 
special  teachers  have  reduced  the  steps  of  instruction  to  such 


^2  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN 

simplicity  that  whole  classes  may  make  as  regular  progress  in 
reading  music  as  in  reading  literature. 

In  regard  to  physical  culture  your  Committee  is  agreed 
that  there  should  be  some  form  of  special  daily  exercises 
5  amounting  in  the  aggregate  to  one  hour  each  week,  the  same  to 
include  the  main  features  of  calisthenics,  and  German,  Swedish, 
or  American  systems  of  physical  training,  but  not  to  be 
regarded  as  a  substitute  for  the  old-fashioned  recess  estab- 
lished to  permit  the  free  exercise  of  the  pupils  in  the  open  air. 

lo  Systematic  physical  training  has  for  its  object  rather  the  will 
training  than  recreation,  and  this  must  not  be  forgotten.  To 
go  from  a  hard  lesson  to  a  series  of  calisthenic  exercises  is  to 
go  from  one  kind  of  will  training  to  another.  Exhaustion  of 
the  will  should  be  followed  by  the  caprice  and  wild  freedom 

15  of  the  recess.  But  systematic  physical  exercise  has  its  suffi- 
cient reason  in  its  aid  to  a  graceful  use  of  the  limbs,  its 
development  of  muscles  that  are  left  unused  or  rudimentary 
unless  called  forth  by  special  training,  and  for  the  help  it  gives 
to  the  teacher  in  the  way  of  school  discipline. 

20  Your  Committee  would  mention  in  this  connection  instruc- 
tion in  morals  and  manners,  which  ought  to  be  given  in  a  brief 
series  of  lessons  each  year  with  a  view  to  build  up  in  the'  mind 
a  theory  of  the  conventionalities  of  polite  and  pure-minded 
society.     If  these  lessons  are  made  too  long  or  too  numerous, 

25  they  are  apt  to  become  offensive  to  the  child's  mind.  It  is  of 
course  understood  by  your  Committee  that  the  substantial 
moral  training  of  the  school  is  performed  by  the  discipline 
rather  than  by  the  instruction  in  ethical  theory.  The  child  is 
trained  to  be  regular  and  punctual,  and  to  restrain  his  desire  to 

30 talk  and  whisper — in  these  things  gaining  self-control  day  by 
day.  Theessenceof  moral  behavior  is  self-control.  The  school 
teaches  good  behavior.  The  intercourse  of  a  pupil  with  his 
fellows  without  evil  words  or  violent  actions  is  insisted  on  and 
secured.     The  higher  moral  qualities  of  truth-telling  and  sin- 

35  cerity  are  taught  in  every  class  exercise  that  lays  stress  on 
accuracy  of  statement. 

Your  Committee  has  already  discussed  the  importance  -of 


ON  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  73 

teaching  something  of  algebraic  processes  in  the  seventh  and 
eighth  grades  with  the  view  to  obtaining  better  methods  of 
solving  problems  in  advanced  arithmetic;  a  majority  of  your - 
Committee  are  of  the  opinion  that  formal  English  grammar 
should  be  discontinued  in  the  eighth  year,  and  the  study  of*  5 
some  foreign  language,  preferably  that  of  Latin,  substituted./ 
The  educational  effect  on  an  English-speaking  pupil  of  taking, 
up  a  language  which,  like  Latin,  uses  inflections   instead  of 
prepositions,  and  which  further  differs  from   English  by  the 
order  in  which  its  words  are  arranged  in  the  sentence,  is  quite  lo 
marked,  and  a  year  of  Latin  places  a  pupil  by  a  wide  interval 
out  of  the   range  of  the  pupil  who  has  continued   English 
grammar   without  taking  up  Latin.     But   the  effect  of   the 
year's  study  of  Latin  increases  the  youth^sjgtower  of  appercep- 
tion^jn  very  many  directions  by  reason  of  the  fact  that  sojs 
much  of  the  English  vocabulary  used  in  technical  vocabularies, 
like  those  of  geography,  grammar,  history,  and  literature,  is 
from  a  Latin  sourc^,  and  besides  there  are  so  many  traces  in 
the  form  and  substance  of  human  learning  of  the  hundreds  of 
years  when  Latin  tvas  the  only  tongue  in  which  observation  20 
and  reflection  could  be  expressed. 

Your  Committee  refers  to  the  programme  given  later  in  this 
report  for  the  details  of  co-ordinating  these  several  branches 
already  recommended. 

The  difference  between  elementary  and  secondary  studies 

In  recommending  the  introduction  of  algebraic  processes  in  25 
the  seventh  and  eighth  years — as  well  as  in  the  recommenda- 
tion just  now  made  to  introduce  Latin  in  the  eighth  year  of 
the  elementary  course — your  Committee  has  come  face  to 
face  with  the  question  of  the  intrinsic  difference  between 
elementary  and  secondary  studies.  30 

Custom  has  placed  algebra,  geometry,  the  history  of  English 
literature,  and  Latin  in  the  rank  of  secondary  studies;  also- 
general  history,  physical  geography,  and  the  elements  of 
physics  and  chemistry.  In  a  secondary  course  of  four  yearfe 
trigonometry   may  be   added   to   the  mathematics;  some   ofsS 


74  REPORT  OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

the  sciences  whose  elements  are  used  in  physical  geography 
may  be  taken  up  separately  in  special  treatises,  as  geology, 
botany,  and  physiology.  There  may  be  also  a  study  of  whole 
works  of  English  authors,  as  Shakspere,  Milton,  and  Scott. 
5  Greek  is  also  begun  in  the  second  or  third  year  of  the 
secondary  course.  This  is  the  custom  in  most  public  high 
schools.  But  in  private  secondary  schools  _Latin  is  begun 
earlier,  and  so,  too,  Greek,  algebra,  and  geometry.  Sometimes 
geometry   is  taken   up   before  algebra,  as  is  the  custom   in 

lo  German  schools.  These  arrangements  are  based  partly  on 
tradition,  partly  on  the  requirements  of  higher  institutions  for 
admission,  and  partly  on  the  ground  that  the  intrinsic  difficul- 
ties in  these  studies  have  fixed  their  places  in  the  course  of 
study.     Of  those  who  claim  that  there  is  an  intrinsic  reason 

15  for  the  selection  and  order  of  these  studies,  some  base  their 
conclusions  on  experience  in  conducting  pupils  through  them, 
others  on  psychological  grounds.  The  latter  contend,  for 
example,  that  algebra  deals  with  general  forms  of  calculation, 
while  arithmetic  deals  with  the  particular  instances  of  calcula- 

2otion.  Whatever  deals  with  the  particular  instance  is  relatively 
elementary,  whatever  deals  with  the  general  form  is  relatively 
secondary.  In  the  expression  a  +  b=c  algebra  indicates  the 
form  of  all  addition.  This  arithmetic  cannot  do,  except  in  the 
form  of  a  verbal  rule  describing  the  steps  of  the  operation :  its 

25  examples  are  all  special  instances  falling  under  the  general 
form  given  in  algebra.  If,  therefore,  arithmetic  is  an  elemen- 
tary branch,  algebra  is  relatively  to  it  a  secondary  branch. 
So,  too,  geometry,  though  not  directly  based  on  arithmetic, 
has  to  presuppose  an  acquaintance  with  it  when  it  reduces 

30 spatial  functions  into  numerical  forms,  as,  for  example,  in  the 
measurement  of  surfaces  and  solids,  and  in  ascertaining  the 
ratio  of  the  circumference  to  the  radius,  and  of  the  hypot- 
enuse to  the  two  other  sides  of  the  right-angled  triangle. 
Geometry,  moreover,  deals  with  necessary  relations;  its  demon- 

35strations  reach  universal  and  necessary  conclusions,  holding 
good  not  merely  in  such  material  shapes  as  we  have  met  with 
in  actual  experience,   but  with  all  examples  possible,  past, 


ON  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  75 

present,  or  future.  Such  knowledge  transcending  experience  is 
intrinsically  secondary  as  compared  with  the  first  acquaintance 
with  geometric  shapes  in  concrete  examples. 

In  the  case  of  geometry  it  is  claimed  by  some  that  what  is 
called  "inventional  geometry"  may  be  properly  introduced  into   5 
the  elementary  grades.     By  this  some  mean  the  practice  with 
blocks  in   the  shape  of  geometric  solids   and  the   construc- 
tion of   different   figures  from  the   same;    others   mean   the 
rediscovery  by  the  pupil  for  himself  of  the  necessary  relations 
demonstrated  by  Euclid.     The  former — exercises  of  construe- 10 
tion  with  blocks — are  well  enough  in  the  kindergarten,  where 
they  assist  in  learning   number,  as  well  as  in  the  analysis  of 
material  forms.     But  its  educational  value  is  small  for  pupils 
advanced  into  the  use  of  books.     The  original  discovery  of 
Euclid's  demonstrations,  on  the  other  hand,  belongs  more  prop- 15 
erly  to  higher  education  than  to  elementary.    In  the  geometrical 
text-books  recently  introduced  into  secondary  schools  there  is 
so  much  of  original  demonstration  required  that  the  teacher  is 
greatly  embarrassed  on  account  of  the  differences  in   native 
capacity  for  mathematics  that  develop  among  the  pupils  of  the  20 
same  class  in  solving  the  problems  of  invention.     A  few  gifted 
pupils  delight  in  the  inventions,  and  develop  rapidly  in  power, 
while  the  majority  of  the  class  use  too  much  time  over  them, 
and  thus  rob  the  other  branches  of  the  course  of  study,  or  else 
fall  into  the  bad  practice  of  getting  help  from  others  in  the  25 
preparation  of  their  lessons.     A  few  in  every  class  fall  hope- 
lessly behind  and  are  discouraged.     The  result  is  an  attempt  on 
the  part  of  the  teacher  to  correct  the  evil  by  requiring  a  more 
thorough  training  in  the  mathematical  studies  preceding,  and 
the  consequent  delay  of  secondary  pupils  in  the  lower  grades  of  30 
the  course  in  order  to  bring  up  their  "inventional  geometry." 
Many,  discouraged,  fail  to  go  on;  many  more  fail  to  reach, 
higher  studies  because  unable  to  get  over  the  barrier  unneces- 
sarily placed  before  them  by  teachers  who  desire  that  no  pupils 
except  natural  geometricians  shall  enter  into  higher  studies.  35 

Physical  geography  in    its  scientific  form  is  very  properly 
made  a  part  of  the  secondary  course  of  study.     The  pupil  in 


76  REPORT  OF  THE  COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 


his  ninth  year  of  work  can  profitably  acquire  the  scientific 
technique  of  geology,  botany,  zoology,  meteorology,  and 
ethnology,  and  in  the  following  years  take  up  those  sciences 
separately  and  push  them  further,  using  the  method  of  actual 
5  investigation.  The  subject-matter  of  physical  geography  is  of 
very  high  interest  to  the  pupil  who  has  studied  geography  in 
the  elementary  grades  after  an  approved  method.  It  takes  up 
the  proximate  grounds  and  causes  for  the  elements  of  differ- 
ence on  the  earth's  surface,  already  become  familiar  to  him 

lo  through  his  elementary  studies,  and  pushes  them  back  into 
deeper,  simpler,  and  more  satisfactory  principles.  This  study 
performs  the  work  also  of  correlating  the  sciences  that  relate  to 
organic  nature  by  showing  their  respective  uses  to  man.  From 
the  glimpses  which  the  pupil  gets  of  mineralogy,  geology, 

15  botany,  zoology,  ethnology,  and  meteorology  in  their  necessary 
connection  as  geographic  conditions  he  sees  the  scope  and 
grand  significance  of  those  separate  inquiries.  A  thirst  is 
aroused  in  him  to  pursue  his  researches  into  their  domains. 
He  sees,  too,  the  borderlands  in  which  new  discoveries  may  be 

20  made  by  the  enterprising  explorer. 

Physics,  including  what  was  called  until  recently  "natural 
philosophy,"  after  Newton's  Principia  (PhilosophicB  naturalis 
principia  mathematicd)^  implies  more  knowledge  of  mathe- 
matics for  its  thorough  discussion  than  the  secondary  pupil  is 

25  likely  to  possess.  In  fact,  the  study  of  this  branch  in  college 
thirty  years  ago  was  crippled  by  the  same  cause.  It  should 
follow  the  completion  of  analytical  geometry.  Notwithstand- 
ing this,  a  very  profitable  study  of  this  subject  may  be  made 
in  the  second  year  of  the  high  school  or  preparatory  school, 

30  although  the  formulas  can  then  be  understood  in  so  far  as  they 
imply  elementary  algebra  only.  The  pupil  does  not  get  the 
most  exact  notions  of  the  quantitative  laws  that  rule  matter  in 
its  states  of  motion  and  equilibrium,  but  he  does  see  the  action 
of  forces  as  qualitative  elements  of  phenomena,  and  understand 

35  quite  well  the  mechanical  inventions  by  which  men  subdue  them 
for  his  use  and  safety.  Even  in  the  elementary  grades  the  pupil 
can  seize  very  many  of  these  qualitative  aspects  and  learn  the 


ON  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  77 

explanation   of   the  mechanical    phenomena   of    nature,  and 
other  applications  of  the  same  principles  in  invention,  as  for 
example,  gravitation  in  falling  bodies:  its  measurement  by  the 
scales;  the  part  it  plays  in  the  pump,  the  barometer,  the  pen- 
dulum ;  cohesion  in  mud,  clay,  glue,  paste,  mortar,  cement,  etc. ;   5 
capillary  attraction  in  lamp-wicks,  sponges,  sugar,  the  sap  in 
plants;  the  applications  of  lifting  by  the  lever,  pulley,  inclined 
plane,  wedge,  and  screw;  heat  in  the  sun,  combustion,  fric- 
tion, steam,  thermometer,  conduction,  clothing,  cooking,  etc.: 
the    phenomena   of   light,    electricity,    magnetism,   and    the  lo 
«  explanation   of  such   mechanical   devices   as   spectacles,  tele- 
scopes, microscopes,  prisms,  photographic    cameras,   electric 
tension  in  bodies,  lightning,  mariner's  compass,  horseshoe  mag- 
net, the  telegraph,  the   dynamo.     This  partially  qualitative 
study  of  forces  and  mechanical  inventions  has  the  educational  15 
effect  of  enlightening  the  pupil,  and  emancipating  him  from 
the  network  of  superstition  that  surrounds  him  in  the  child 
world,  partly  of  necessity  and  partly  by  reason  of  the  illiterate 
adults  that  he  sometimes  meets  with  in  the  persons  of  nurses, 
servants,    and    tradespeople,   whose    occupations   have   more  20 
attraction  for  him  than  those  of  cultured  people.     The  fairy 
world  is  a  world  of   magic,    of  immediate  interventions   of 
supernatural  spiritual  beings,  and  while  this  is  proper  enough 
for  the  child  up  to  the  time  of  the  school,  and  in  a  lessening 
degree  for  some  time  after,  it  is  only  negative  and  harmful  in  25 
adult  manhood  and  womanhood.     It  produces  arrested  devel- 
opment of  powers  of  observation  and  reflection  in  reference  to 
phenomena,  and  stops  the  growth  of  the  soul  at  the  infantine 
stage   of   development.      Neither   is   this   infantine   stage   of    • 
wonder  and  magic  more  religious  than  the  stage  of  disillusion  30 
through   the  study  of  mathematics  and  physics.      It  is  the 
arrest  of  religious  development  also,  at  the  stage  of  fetichism. 
The  highest  religion,  that  of  pure  Christianity,  sees  in  the 
world  infinite  mediations,  all  for  the  purpose  of  developing 
independent  individuality;  the  perfection  of  human  souls  not  35 
only  in  one  kind  of  piety,  namely  that  of  the  heart,  but  in  the 
piety  of  the  intellect  that  beholds  truth,  the  piety  of  the  will 


i 


78  REPORT  OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

that  does  good  deeds  wisely,  the  piety  of  the  senses  that  sees 
the  beautiful  and  realizes  it  in  works  of  art.  This  is  the  Chris- 
tian  idea  of  divine  Providence  as  contrasted  with  the  heathen 
idea  of  that  Providence,  and  the  study  of  natural  philosophy 
sis  an  essential  educational  requisite  in  its  attainment,  although 
a  negative  means.  Of  course  there  is  danger  of  replacin|^( 
spiritual  idea  of  the  divine  by  the  dynamical  or  mechaSil^ 
idea  and  thus  arresting  the  mind  at  the  stage  of  pantheism 
instead  of  fetichism.    But  this  danger  can  be  avoided  by  further 

10 education  through  secondary   into  higher    education,  whos 
entire  spirit  and  method  are  comparative  and  philosophical  i 
the  best  sense  of  the  term.     For  higher  education  seems  t 
have  as  its  province  the  correlation  of  the  several  branches  of 
human  learning  in  the  unity  of  the  spiritual  view  furnished  by 

15  religion  to  our  civilization.     By  it  one  learns  to  see  each  branch, 
each  science  or  art  or  discipline,  in  the  light  of  all  the  others. 
This  higher  or  comparative  view  is  essential  to  any  complete- 
ness of  education,  for  it  alone  prevents  the  one-sidedness  o^ 
hobbies,  or  "fads"  as  they  are  called  in  the  slang  of  the  dayl 

20 It  prevents  also  the  bad  effects  that  flow  from  the  influencd 
of  what  are  termed  "self-educated  men,"  who  for  the  most  par! 
carry  up  with  them  elementary  methods  of  study,  or  at  best 
secondary  methods,  which  accentuate  the  facts  and  relation 
of-natural  and  spiritual  phenomena,  but  do  not  deal  with  thei 

25  higher  correlations.  The  comparative  method  cannot,  in  fact 
be  well  introduced  until  the  student  is  somewhat  advanced 
and  has  already  completed  his  elementary  course  of  stud) 
dealing  with  the  immediate  aspects  of  the  world,  and  hi 
secondary  course  dealing  with  the  separate  formal  and  dynam 

3oical  aspects  that  lie  next  in  order  behind  the  facts  of  firs 
observation.  Higher  education  in  a  measure  unifies  these  separ 
ate  formal  and  dynamic  aspects,  corrects  their  one-sidedness 
and  prevents  the  danger  of  what  is  so  often  noted  in  the  self 
educated  men  who  unduly  exaggerate  some  one  of  the  subordi- 

35  nate  aspects  of  the  world  and  make  it  a  sort  of  first  principle 

Here  your  Committee  finds  in  its  way  the  question  of  the 

use  of  the  full  scientific  method  in  the  teaching  of  science  in 


ON   CORRELATION    OF  STUDIES.  79 

the  elementary  school.  The  true  method  has  been  called  the 
method  of  investigation,  but  that  method  as  used  by  the  child 
is  only  a  sad  caricature  of  the  method  used  by  the  mature 
scientific  man,  who  has  long  since  passed  through  the  fragmen- 
tary observation  and  reflection  that  prevail  in  the  period  of  5 
diikihood,  as  well  as  the  tendencies  to  exaggeration  of  the 
^dnpfcrtance  of  one  or  another  branch  of  knowledge  at  the 
^expense  of  the  higher  unity  that  correlates  all ;  an  exaggeration 
that  manifests  itself  in  the  possession  and  use  of  a  hobby. 
The  ideal  scientific  man  has  freed  himself  from  obstacles  of  10 
this  kind,  whether  psychological  or  objective.  What  astronom- 
ical observers  call  the  subjective  coefficient  must  be  ascer- 
tained and  eliminated  from  the  record  that  shows  beginnings, 
endings,  and  rates.  There  is  a  possibility  of  perfect  speciali- 
zation in  a  scientific  observer  only  after  the  elementary  and  15 
secondary  attitudes  of  mind  have  been  outgrown.  An  attempt 
to  force  the  child  into  the  full  scientific  method  by  specializa- 
tion would  cause  an  arrest  of  his  development  in  the  other 
branches  of  human  learning  outside  of  his  specialty.  He  could 
not  properly  inventory  the  data  of  his  own  special  sphere  unless  20 
he  knew  how  to  recognize  the  defining  limits  or  boundaries 
that  separate  his  province  from  its  neighbors.  The  early  days 
of  science  abounded  in  examples  of  confusion  of  provinces  in 
the  inventories  of  their  data.  It  is  difficult,  even  now,  to  decide 
where  physics  and  chemistry  leave  off,  and  biology  begins.         25 

Your  Committee  does  not  attempt  to  state  the  exact  propor- 
tion in  which  the  child,  at  his  various  degrees  of  advancement, 
may  be  able  to  dispense  with  the  guiding  influence  of  teacher 
and  text-book  in  his  investigations,  but  they  protest  strongly 
against  the  illusion  under  which  certain  zealous  advocates  of  30 
the  early  introduction  of  scientific  method  seem  to  labor. 
They  ignore  in  their  zeal  the  deduction  that  is  to  be  made  for 
the  guiding  hand  of  the  teacher,  who  silently  furnishes  to  the 
child  the  experience  that  he  lacks,  and  quietly  directs  his 
special  attention  to  this  or  to  that  phase,  and  prevents  him  35 
from  hasty  or  false  generalization  as  well  as  from  undue  exag- 
geration of  single  facts  or  principles.     Here  the  teacher  adds 


80  REPORT  OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

the  needed  scientific  outlook  which  the  child  lacks,  but  which 
the  mature  scientist  possesses  for  himself. 

It  is  contended  by  some  that  the  scientific  frame  of  mind  is 
adapted  only  to  science,  but  not  to  art,  literature,  and  religion, 
5 which  have  something  essential  that  science  does  not  reach; 
not  because  of  the  incompleteness  of  the  sciences  themselves, 
but  because  of  the  attitude  of  the  mind  assumed  in  the  obser- 
vation of  nature.  In  analytic  investigation  there  is  isolation  of 
parts  one  from  another,  with  a  view  to  find  the  sources  of  the 

lo  influences  which  produce  the  phenomena  shown  in  the  object. 
The  mind  brings  everything  to  the  test  of  this  idea.  Every 
phenomenon  that  exists  comes  from  beyond  itself,  and  analysis 
will  be  able  to  trace  the  source. 

Now,  this  frame  of  mind,  which  insists  on  a  foreign  origin  of 

15  all  that  goes  to  constitute  an  object,  debars  itself  in  advance 
from  the  province  of  religion,  art,  and  literature  as  well  as  of 
philosophy.  Fon  self-determination,  personal  activity,  is  the 
first  principle  assumed  by  religion,  and  it  is  tacitly  assumed  by 
art  and  literature.  Classic  and  Christian.     The  very  definition 

20  of  philosophy  implies  this,  for  it  is  the  attempt  to  explain  the 
world  by  the  assumption  of  a  first  principle,  and  to  show  that 
all  classes  of  objects  imply  that  principle  as  ultimate  presuppo 
sition.     According  to  this  view  it  is  important  not  to  attempt 
to  hasten  the  use  of  a  strictly  scientific  method  on  the  part  of 

25  the  child.  In  his  first  years  he  is  acquiring  the  results  of 
civilization  rather  as  an  outfit  of  habits,  usages,  and  traditions 
than  as  a  scientific  discovery.  He  cannot  be  expected  to  stand 
over  against  the  culture  of  his  time,  and  challenge  one  and  all 
of  its  conventionalities  to  justify  themselves  before  his  reason 

30  His  reason  is  too  weak.  He  is  rather  in  the  imitation  stage 
of  mind  than  in  that  of  criticism.  He  will  not  reach  the  com- 
parative or  critical  method  until  the  era  of  higher  education 

However  this  may  be,  it  is  clear  that  the  educational  value 
of  science  and  its  method  is  a  very  important  question,  and 

35  that  on  it  depends  the  settlement  of  the  question  where 
specialization  may  begin.  To  commence  the  use  of  the  real 
scientific  method  would  imply  a  radical  change  also  in  methods 


ON  CORRELATION   OF  STUDIES.  8 1 

from  the  beginning.  This  may  be  realized  by  considering  the 
hold  which  even  the  kindergarten  retains  upon  symbolism 
and  upon  art  and  literature.  But  in  the  opinion  of  a  majority 
of  your  Committee  natural  science  itself  should  be  approached, 
in  the  earliest  years  of  the  elementary  school,  rather  in  the  5: 
form  of  results  with  glimpses  into  the  methods  by  which  these 
results  were  reached.  In  the  last  two  years  (the  seventh  and 
eighth)  there  may  be  some  strictness  of  scientific  form  and 
an  exhibition  of  the  method  of  discovery.  The  pupil,  too, 
may  to  some  extent  put  this  method  in  practice  himself.  In  ioj 
the  secondary  school  there  should  be  some  laboratory  work. 
But  the  pupil  cannot  be  expected  to  acquire  for  himself  fully 
the  scientific  method  of  dealing  with  nature  until  the  second 
part  of  higher  education — its  post-graduate  work.  Neverthe- 
less this  good  should  be  kept  in  view  from. the  first  year  of  the  13 
elementary  school,  and  there  should  be  a  gradual  and  con- 
tinual approach  to  it. 

In  the  study  of  general  history  appears  another  branch  of 
the  secondary  course.     History  of  the  native  land  is  assumed 
to  be  an  elementary  study.     History  of  the  world  is  certainly  20 
a  step  further  away  from  the  experience  of  the  child.     It  is 
held  by  some  teachers  to  be  in  accordance  with  proper  method 
to  begin  with  the  foreign  relations  of  one's  native  land  and 
to  work  outward  to  the  world-history.     The  European  relations 
involved  in  the  discovery  and  colonization  of  America  furnish  25 
the  only  explanation  to  a  multitude  of  questions  that  the  pupil 
has  started  in  the  elementary  school.     He  should   move  out- 
ward from  what  he  has  already  learned,  by  the  study  of  a  new 
concentric  circle  of  grounds  and  reasons,  according  to  this  view. 
This,  however,  is  not  the  usual  course  taken.     On  beginning  50 
secondary  history  the  pupil  is  set  back  face  to  face  with  the 
period  of  tradition,  just  when  historic  traces   first  make  their 
appearance.     He  is  by  this  arrangement  broken  off  from  the 
part  of  history  that  he  has  become  acquainted  with  and' made  to 
grapple  with  that  period  which  has  no  relation  to  his- previous  35 
investigations.     It  is  to  be  said,  however,  that  general  history 
lays  stress  on  the  religious  thread  of  connection,  though. less  now 


82  REPORT  OF   THE  COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

than  formerly.  The  world  history  is  a  conception  of  the  great 
Christian  thinker,  St.  Augustine,  who  held  that  the  world 
and  its  history  is  a  sort  of  antiphonic  hymn  in  which  God 
reads  his  counsels,  and  the  earth  and  man  read  the  responses. 
5  He  induced  Orosius,  his  pupil,  to  sketch  a  general  history  in 
the  spirit  of  his  view.  It  was  natural  that  the  Old  Testament 
histories,  and  especially  the  chapters  of  Genesis,  should  furnish 
the  most  striking  part  of  its  contents.  This  general  history 
was    connected    with    religion    and    brought    closer    to   the 

lo  experience  of  the  individual  than  the  history  of  his  own 
people.  To  commence  history  with  the  Garden  of  Eden,  the 
Fall  of  Man,  and  the  Noachian  Deluge  was  to  begin  with  what 
was  most  familiar  to  all  minds,  and  most  instructive,  because  it 
concerned  most  nearly  the  conduct  of  life.     Thus  religion  fur- 

15  nished  the  apperceptive  material  by  which  the  early  portions  of 

history  were  recognized,  classified,  and  made  a  part  of  experience. 

Now  that  studies  in  archaeology,  especially  those  in  the  Nile 

and  Euphrates  valleys,  are  changing  the  chronologies  and  the 

records  of  early  times  and  adding  new  records  of  the  past, 

20  bringing  to  light  national  movements  and  collisions  of  peoples, 
together  with  data  by  which  to  determine  the  status  of  their 
industrial  civilization,  their  religious  ideas,  and  the  form  of 
their  literature  and  art,  the  concentric  arrangement  of  all  this 
material  around  the  history  of  the  chosen  people  as  a  nucleus 

25  is  no  longer  possible.  The  question  has  arisen,  therefore, 
whether  general  history  should  not  be  rearranged  for  the 
secondary  school,  and  made  to  connect  with  American  history 
for  apperceptive  material  rather  than  with  Old  Testament 
history.     To  this  it  has  been  replied  with,  force  that  the  idea 

30  of  a  world  history,  as  St.  Augustine  conceived  it,  is  the  noblest 
educative  ideal  ever  connected  with  the  subject  of  history. 
Future  versions  of  general  history  will  not  desert  this  stand- 
point, we  are  told,  even  if  they  take  as  their  basis  that  of 
ethnology  and  anthropology,  for  these,  too,  will  exhibit  a  plan 

35  in  human  history — an  educative  principle  that  leads  nations 
toward  freedom  and  science,  because  the  Creator  of  nature 
has  made  it,  in  its  fundamental  constitution,  an  evolution  or 


ON  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  83 

progressive  development  of  individuality.  Thus  the  idea  of 
divine  Providence  is  retained,  though  made  more  comprehen- 
sive by  bringing  the  whole  content  of  natural  laws  within  his 
will  as  his  method  of  work. 

These  considerations,  we  are  reminded  by  the  partisans  of  5 
humanity  studies,  point  back  to  the  educative  value  of  history 
as  corrective  of   the  one-sidedness  of  the  method  of  science. 
Science  seeks  explanation  in  the  mechanical  conditions  of,  and 
impulses  received  from,  the  environment,  while  history  keeps 
its  gaze  fixed  on  human  purposes,  and  studies  the  genesis  of  10 
national  actions  through  the  previous  stages  of  feelings,  con- 
victions, and  conscious  ideas.     In  history  the  pupil  has  for  his 
object  self-activity,  reaction  against  environment,  instead  of^ 
mechanism,  or  activity  through  another. 

The  history  of  English  literature  is  another  study  of  the  15 
secondary  school.     It  is  very  properly  placed  beyond  the  ele- 
mentary  school,    for    as    taught    it    consists  largely  of  the 
biographies  of  men  of  letters.     The  pupils  who  have  not  yet 
learned  any  great  work  of  literature  should  not  be  pestered 
with  literary  biography,  for  at  that  stage  the  greatness  of  the  20 
men  of  letters  cannot  be  seen.     Plutarch  makes  great  biogra- 
phies because  he  shows  heroic  struggles  and  great  deeds.    The 
heroism  of  artists  and  poets  consists  in  sacrificing  all  for  the 
sake  of  their  creations.     The  majority  of  them  come  off  sadly 
at  the  hands  of  the  biographer,  for  the  reason  that  the  very  25 
sides  of  their  lives  are  described  which  they  had  slighted  and 
neglected  for  the  sake  of  the  Muses.     The  prophets  of  Israel 
did  not  live  in  city  palaces,  but  in  caves ;  they  did  not  wear 
fine  raiment,  nor  feed  sumptuously,  nor  conform  to  the  codes  of 
polite  society.    They  were  no  courtiers  when  they  approached  30 
the  king.     They  neglected  all  the  other  institutions — family, 
productive  industry,  and  state — for  the  sake  of  one,  the  Church, 
and  even  that  not  the  established  ceremonial  of  the  people, 
but  a  higher  and  more  direct  communing  with  Jehovah.     So 
with  artists  and  men  of  letters  it  is  more  or  less  the  case  that  35 
the  institutional  side  of  their  lives  is  neglected,  or  unsymmet- 
rical,  or  if  this  is  not  the  case  it  will  be  found  prosaic  and 


84  REPORT   OF   THE   COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN 

uneventful,   throwing   no   light   on   their    matchless    produc- 
tions. 

For  these  reasons  should  not  the  present  use  of  literary 
biography  as  it  exists  in  secondary  schools,  and  is  gradually 

•  5  making  its  way  into  elementary  schools,  be  discouraged,  and 
the  time  now  given  to  it  devoted  to  the  study  of  literary  works 
of  art?  It  will  be  admitted  that  the  exposure  of  the  foibles 
of  artists  has  an  immoral  tendency  on  youth :  for  example, 
one  affects  to  be  a  poet,  and  justifies  laxity  and  self-indulgence 

10  through  the  example  of  Byron.  Those  who  support  this  view 
hold  that  we  should  not  dignify  the  immoral  and  defective 
side  of  life  by  making  it  a  branch  of  study  in  school. 

Correlation  by  synthesis  of  studies 

Your  Committee  would  mention  another  sense  in  which  the 
expression  correlation  of  studies  is  sometimes  used.    It  is  held 

15  by  advocates  of  an  artificial  center  of  the  course  of  study. 
They  use,  for  example,  De  Foe's  Robinson  Crusoe  for  a  reading 
exercise,  and  connect  with  it  the  lessons  in  geography  and 
arithmetic.  It  has  been  pointed  out  by  critics  of  this  method 
that  there  is  always  danger  of  covering  up  the  literary  features 

20  of  the  reading  matter  under  accessories  of  mathematics  and 
natural  science.  If  the  material  for  other  branches  is  to  be 
sought  for  in  connection  with  the  literary  exercise,  it  will  dis- 
tract the  attention  from  the  poetic  unity.  On  the  other  hand, 
arithmetic  and  geography  cannot  be  unfolded  freely  and  com- 

25  prehensively  if  they  are  to  wait  on  the  opportunities  afforded 
in  a  poem  or  novel  for  their  development.  A  correlation  of 
this  kind,  instead  of  being  a  deeper  correlation  such  as  is  found 
i^  all  parts  of  human  learning  by  the  studies  of  the^college  and 
university,  is  rather  a  shallow  and  uninteresting  kind  of  corre- 

3olation  that  reminds  one  of  the  system  of  mnemonics,  or  arti- 
ficial memory,  which  neglects  the  association  of  facts  and  everts 
with  their  causes  ^nd  the  history  of  their  evolution,  and  looks 
for  unessential  quips,  puns,  or  accidental  suggestions  with  a 
view  to  strengthening  the  memory.      The  effect  of  this  is  to 

35  weaken  the  power  of  systematic  thinking  which   deals  with 


ON   CORRELATION   OF   STUDIES.  85 

essential  relations,  and  substitute  for  it  a  chaotic  memory  that        ^     ^ 
ties  together  things  through  false  and  seeming  relations,  not  **^j 
of  the  things  and  events,  but  of  the  words  that  denote  them.      C/ 


The   correlation  of  geography  and  arithmetic  and  history 
in  and  through  the  unity  of  a  work  of  fiction  is  at  best  an   5 
artificial  correlation,  which  will  stand  in  the  way  of  the  true 
objective  correlation.     It  is  a  temporary  scaffolding  made  for 
school  purposes.      Instruction  should  avoid  such   temporary 
structures  as  much  as  possible,  and  when  used  they  should  be 
only  used   for  the  day,  and  not  for  the  year,  because  of  the  10 
danger  of  building  up  an  apperceptive  center  in  the  child's 
mind  that  will  not  harmonize  with  the  true  apperceptive  center 
required  by  the  civilization.     The  story  of  Robinson  Crusoe 
has  intense  interest  to  the  child  as  a  lesson  in  sociology,  show- 
ing him  the  helplessness  of  isolated  man  and  the  re-enforce- is 
ment  that  comes  to  him  through  society.    It  shows  the  impor- 
tance of  the  division  of  labor.     All  children  should  read  this 
book  in  the  later  years  of  the  elementary  course,  and  a  few 
profitable  discussions  may  be  had  in  school  regarding  its  sig- 
nificance.   But  De  Foe  painted  in  it  only  the  side  of  adventure  20 
that  he  found  in  his  countrymen  in  his  epoch,  England  after 
the  defeat  of  the  Armada  having  taken  up  a  career  of  con- 
quest on  the  seas,  ending  by  colonization  and  a  world  com- 
merce.    The  liking  for  adventure  continues  to  this  day  among 
all  Anglo-Saxon  peoples,  and  beyond  other  nationalities  there  25 
is  in   English-speaking  populations  a  delight  in  building  up 
civilization  from  the  very  foundation.     This  is  only,  however, 
one  phase  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  mind.     Consequently  the  his- 
tory of  Crusoe  is  not  a  proper  center  for  a  year's  study  in 
school.     It   omits  cities,  governments,  the  world  commerce,  30 
the  international  process,  the  Church,  the  newspaper  and  book 
from  view,  and  they  are  not  even  reflected  in  it. 

Your  Committee  would  call  attention  in  this  connection  to  the 
importance  of  the  pedagogical  principle  of  analysis  and  isolation 
as  preceding  synthesis'  and_-correlatio_n.     There  should  be  rigid  35 
isolation  of  the  elements  of  each  branch  for  the  purpose  of  get- 
ting a  clear  conception  of  what  is  individual  and  peculiar  in  a 


86  REPORT  OF   THE   COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN 

special  province  of  learning.  Otherwise  one  will  not  gain  from 
each  its  special  contribution  to  the  whole.  That  there  is  some 
danger  from  the  kind  of  correlation  that  essays  to  teach  all 
branches  in  each  will  be  apparent  from  this  point  of  view. 

III.   THE   SCHOOL  PROGRAMME 

5  In  order  to  find  a  place  in  the  elementary  school  for  the 
several  branches  recommended  in  this  report,  it  will  be  nec- 
essary to  use  economically  the  time  allotted  for  the  school 
term,  which  is  about  two  hundred  days,  exclusive  of  vacations 
and  holidays.     Five  days  per  week  and  five  hours  of  actual 

lo  school  work  or  a  little  less  per  day,  after  excluding  recesses  for 
recreation,  give  about  twenty-five  hours  per  week.  There 
should  be,  as  far  as  possible,  alternation  of  study-hours  and 
recitations  (the  word  recitation  being  used  in  thje  United 
States  for  class  exercise  or  lesson  conducted  by  the  teacher 

1 5  and  requiring  the  critical  attention  of  the  entire  class).  Those 
studies  requiring  the  clearest  thought  should  be  taken  up,  as  a 
usual  thing,  in  the  morning  session,  say  arithmetic  the  second 
half  hour  of  the  morning  and  grammar  the  half-hour  next 
succeeding  the  morning  recess  for  recreation  in  the  open  air. 

2oBy  some  who  are  anxious  to  prevent  study  at  home,  or  at  least 
to  control  its  amount,  it  is  thought  advisable  to  place  the 
arithmetic  lesson  after  the  grammar  lesson,  so  that  the  study 
learned  at  home  will  be  grammar  instead  of  arithmetic.  It  is 
found  by  experience  that  if  mathematical  problems  are  taken 

25  home  for  solution  two  bad  habits. arise,  namely,  in  one  case,  the 
pupil  gets  assistance  from  his  parents  or  others,  and  thereby 
loses  to  some  extent  his  own  power  of  overcoming  difficulties 
by  brave  and  persistent  attacks  unaided  by  others ;  the  other 
evil  is  a  habit  of  consuming  long  hours  in  the  preparation  of  a 

30 lesson  that  should  be  prepared  in  thirty  minutes,  if  all  the 
powers  of  mind  are  fresh  and  at  command.  An  average  child 
may  spend  three  hours  in  the  preparation  of  an  arithmetic 
lesson.  Indeed,  in  repeated  efforts  to  solve  one  of  the  so- 
called  *'  conundrums,**  a  whole  family  may  spend   the  entire 

35  evening.     One  of  the  unpleasant  results  of  the  next  day  is 


ON   CORRELATION   OF   STUDIES.  87 

that  the  teacher  who  conducts  the  lesson  never  knows  the 
exact  capacity  and  rate  of  progress  of  his  pupils ;  in  the 
recitation  he  probes  the  knowledge  and  preparation  of  the 
pupil,  plus  an  unknown  amount  of  preparatory  work  borrowed 
from  parents  and  others.  He  even  increases  the  length  of  the 
lessons,  and  requires  more  work  at  home,  when  the  amount 
already  exceeds  the  unaided  capacity  of  the  pupil. 

The  lessons  should  be  arranged  so  as  to  bring  in  such  exer- 
cises as  furnish  relief  from  intellectual  tension  between  others 
that  make  large  demands  on  the  thinking  powers.  Such  exer- 1 
cises  as  singing  and  calisthenics,  writing  and  drawing,  also  read- 
ing, are  of  the  nature  of  a  relief  from  those  recitations  that  tax 
the  memory,  critical  alertness,  and  introspection,  like  arithme- 
tic, grammar,  and  history. 

Your  Committee  has  not  been  able  to  agree  on  the  question  115 
whether  pupils  who  leave  school  early  should  have  a  course  of 
study  different  from  the  course  of  those  who  are  to  continue 
on  into  secondary  and  higher  work.     It  is  contended,  on  the/ 
one  hand,  that  those  who  leave  early  should  have  a  more  practiw 
cal  course,  and  that  they  should  dispense  with  those  studies 
that  seem  to  be  in  the  nature  of  preparatory  work  for  sec- 
ondary and  higher  education.     Such  studies  as  algebra  and 
Latin,  for  example,  should  not  be  taken  up  unless  the  pupil 
expects  to  pursue  the  same  for  a  sufficient  time  to  complete 
the  secondary  course.  ,  It  is  replied,  on  the  other  hand,  that  it^s 
is  best  to  have  one  course  for  all,  because  any  school  education 
is  at  best  but  an  initiation  for  the  pupil  into  the  art  of  learn- 
ing, and  that  wherever  he  leaves  off  in  his  school  course  he 
should  continue,  by  the  aid  of  the  public  library  and  home 
study,  in  the  work  of  mastering  science  and  literature.     It  is  30 
further  contended  that  a  brief  .course  in  higher  studies,  like 
Latin  and  algebra,  instead  of  being  useless,  is  of  more  value  . 
than  any  elementary  studies  that  might  replace  them.     The  \ 
first  ten  lessons  in  algebra  give  the  pupil  the  fundamental  idea 
of  the  general  expression  of  arithnietical  solutions  by  means  35 
of  letters  and  other  symbols.     Six  months'  study  of  it  gives 
him  the  power  to  use  the  method  in  stating  the  manifold  con- 


88  REPORT  OF  THE   COMMITTEE    OF  FIFTEEN 

ditions  of  a  problem  in  partnership,  or  in  ascertaining  a  value 
that  depends  on  several  transformations  of  the  data  given.  It 
is  claimed,  indeed,  that  the  first  few  lessons  in  any  branch  are 
relatively  of  more  educational  value  than  an  equal  number  of 
5  subsequent  lessons,  because  the  fundamental  ideas  and  princi- 
ples of  the  new  study  are  placed  at  the  beginning.  In  Latin, 
for  instance,  the  pupil  learns  in  his  first  week's  study  the  to 
him  strange  phenomenon  of  a  language  that  performs  by 
inflections  what  his  own  language  performs  by  the  use  of  prep- 

oositions  and  auxiliaries.  He  is  still  more  surprised  to  find  that 
the  order  of  words  in  a  sentence  is  altogether  different  in  Ro- 
man usage  from  that  to  which  he  is  accustomed.  He  further 
begins  to  recognize  in  the  Latin  words  many  roots  or  stems 
which   are  employed  to  denote  immediate  sensuous  objects, 

15  while  they  have  been   adopted  into   his    English   tongue   to 

signify  fine  shades  of  distinction  in  thought  or  feeljj^g'—  By 

'^ese'  three  filings  his  powers  of  oSse^atioiLJn 'matters  of 

language  are  armed,  as  it  were,  with  new  faculties.     Nothing 

that  he  has  hitherto  learned  in  grammar  is  so  radical  and  far- 

20  reaching  as  what  he  learns  in  his  first  week's  study  of  Latin. 
The  Latin  arrangement  of  words  in  a  sentence  indicates  a  dif- 
ferent order  of  mental  arrangement  in  the  process  of  appre- 
hension and  expression  of  thought.  This  arrangement  is  ren- 
dered  possible   by  declensions.      This  amounts  to   attaching 

25  prepositions  to  the  ends  of  the  words,  which  they  thus  convert 
into  adjectival  or  adverbial  modifiers ;  whereas  the  separate 
prepositions  of  the  English  must  indicate  by  their  position  in 
the  sentence  their  grammatical  relation.  These  observations, 
and  the  new  insight  into  the  etymology  of  English  words  hav- 

30  ing  a  Latin  derivation,  are  of  the  nature  of  mental  seeds  which 
will  grow  and  bear  fruit  throughou_tJife_in^the  better  command 
olone's  native  tongue.  All  this  will  come  from  a  very  brief 
time  devoted  toUatin  in  school. 

Amount  of  time  for  each  branch 

Your  Committee  recommends  that  an  hour  of  sixty  minutes 
35  each  week  be  assigned  in  the  programme  for  each  of  the  fol- 


ON   CORRELATION   OF  STUDIES.  89 

lowing  subjects  throughout  the  eight  years :  physical  culture, 
vocal  music,  oral  lessons  in  natural  science  (hygiene  to  be 
included  among  the  topics  under  this  head),  oral  lessons  in 
biography  and  general  history,  and  that  the  same  amount  of 
time  each  week  shall  be  devoted  to  drawing  from  the  second  5 
year  to  the  eighth  inclusive ;  to  manual  training  during  the 
seventh  and  eighth  years  so  as  to  include  sewing  and  cookery 
for  the  girls,  and  work  in  wood  and  iron  for  the  boys. 

Your  Committee  recommends  that  reading  be  given  at  least 
one  lesson  each  day  for  the  entire  eight  years,  it  being  under- 10 
stood,  however,  that  there  shall  be  two  or  more  lessons  each  day 
in  reading  in  the  first  and  second  years,  in  which  the  recitation 
is  necessarily  very  short,  because  of  the  inability  of  the  pupil  to 
give  continued  close  attention,  and  because  he  has  little  power 
of  applying  himself  to  the  work  of  preparing  lessons  by  him- 15 
self.     In  the  first  three  years  the  reading  should  be  limited  to 
pieces  in  the  colloquial  style,  but  selections  from  the  classics 
of  the  language  in  prose  and  in  poetry  shall  be  read  to  the 
pupil  from  time  to  time,  and  discussions  made  of  such  features 
of  the  selections  read  as  may  interest  the  pupils.     After  the  20 
third  year  your  Committee  believes  that  the  reading  lesson 
should  be  given  to  selections  from  classic  authors  of  EngHsh,. 
and  that  the  work  of  the  recitation  should  be  divided  between 
(a)  the  elocution,  (d)  the  grammatical  peculiarities  of  the  lan- 
guage, including  spelling,  definitions,  syntactical  construction,  25 
punctuation,  and  figures  of  prosody,  and  (c)  the  literary  con- 
tents, including  the  main  and  accessory  ideas,  the  emotions 
painted,  the  deeds  described,  the  devices  of  style  to  produce  a 
strong  impression  on  the  reader.   Your  Committee  wishes  to  lay 
emphasis  on  the  importance  of  the  last  item, — that  of  literary  3Q 
study, — which  should  consume  more  and  more  of  the  time  oi 
the  recitation  from  grade  to  grade  in  the  period  from  the  fourth 
to  the  eighth  year.     In  the  fourth  year  and  previously  the  first 
item — that  of   elocution,  to  secure  distinct  enunciation  and 
correct   pronunciation^should   be   most   prominent.     In  the  35 
fifth  and  sixth  years  the  second  item — that  of  spelling,  defin- 
ing, and  punctuation — should  predominate  slightly  over  the 


go  REPORT  OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN  , 

other  two  items.  In  the  years  from  the  fifth  to  the  eighth 
there  should  be  some  reading  of  entire  stories,  such  as 
GulHver's  Travels,  Robinson  Crusoe,  Rip  Van  Winkle,  The 
Lady  of  the  Lake,  Hiawatha,  and  similar  stories  adapted  in 
Sstyle  and  subject-matter  to  the  capacity  of  the  pupils.  An 
hour  should  be  devoted  each  week  to  conversations  on  the 
salient  points  of  the  story,  its  literary  and  ethical  bearings. 

Your  Committee   agrees  in   the  opinion  that  in  teaching 
language  care  should  be  taken  that  the  pupil  practices  much 

loin  writing  exercises  and  original  compositions.  At  first  the 
pupil  will  use  only  his  colloquial  vocabulary,  but  as  he  gains 
command  of  the  technical  vocabularies  of  geography,  arithme- 
tic, and  history,  and  learns  the  higher  literary  vocabulary  of  his 
language,  he  will  extend  his  use  of  words  accordingly.     Daily 

1 5  from  the  first  year  the  child  will  prepare  some  lesson  or  por- 
tion of  a  lesson  in  writing.  Your  Committee  has  included 
under  the  head  of  oral  grammar  (from  the  first  to  the  middle 
of  the  fifth  year)  one  phase  of  this  written  work  devoted  to  the 
study  of  the  literary  form  and  the  technicalities  of  composition 

20  in  such  exercises  as  letter  writing,  written  reviews  of  the 
several  branches  studied,  reports  of  the  oral  lessons  in  natural 
science  and  histoiy,  paraphrases  of  the  poems  and  prose  litera- 
ture of  the  readers,  and  finally  compositions  or  written  essays 
on  suitable  themes  assigned  by  the  teacher,  but  selected  from 

25  the  fields  of  knowledge  studied  in  school.  Care  should  be 
taken  to  criticise  all  paraphrases  of  poetry  in  respect  to  the 
good  or  bad  taste  shown  in  the  choice  of  words  ;  parodies 

•    should  never  be  permitted. 

It  is  thought  by  your  Committee  that  the  old  style  of  com- 

30  position  writing  was  too  formal.  It  was  kept  too  far  away 
from  the  other  work  of  the  pupil.  Instead  of  giving  a  written 
account  of  what  he  had  learned  in  arithmetic,  geography, 
grammar,  history,  and  natural  science,  the  pupil  attempted 
artificial    descriptions    and    reflections  on  such    subjects    as 

35  "  Spring,"  "  Happiness,"  **  Perseverance,"  "  Friendship,"  or 
something  else  outside  of  the  line  of  his  school  studies. 

Your  Committee   has  already   expressed    its  opinion   that 


ON  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  QI 

a  good  English  style  is  not  to  be  acquired  by  the  study  of 
grammar  so  much  as  by  familiarity  with  groat  masterpieces 
of  literature.  We  especially  recommend  that  pupils  who 
have  taken  up  the  fourth  and  fifth  readers,  containing  the 
selections  from  great  authors,  should  often  be  required  to  5 
make  written  paraphrases  of  prose  or  poetic  models  of  style, 
using  their  own  vocabulary  to  express  the  thoughts  so  far  as 
possible,  and  borrowing  the  recherche  words  and  phrases  of 
the  author,  where  their  own  resources  fail  them.  In  this  way 
the  pupil  learns  to  see  what  the  great  author  has  done  to  en- 10 
rich  the  language  and  to  furnish  adequate  means  of  expression 
for  what  could  not  be  presented  in  words  before,  or  at  least 
not  in  so  happy  a  manner. 

Your  Committee  believes  that  every  recitation  is,  in  one 
aspect  of  it,  an  attempt  to  express  the  thoughts  and  informa-15 
tion  of  the  lesson  in  the  pupil's  own  words,  and  thus  an  initial 
exercise  in  composition.  The  regular  weekly  written  review 
of  the  important  topics  in  the  several  branches  studied  is  a 
more  elaborate  exercise  in  composition,  the  pupil  endeavoring 
to  collect  what  he  knows  and  to  state  it  systematically  and  20 
in  proper  language.  The  punctuation,  spelling,  syntax,  pen- 
manship, choice  of  words,  and  style  should  not,  it  is  true,  be 
made  a  matter  of  criticism  in  connection  with  the  other  lessons, 
but  only  in  the  language  lesson  proper.  But  the  pupil  will  learn 
language,  all  the  same,  by  the  written  and  oral  recitations.  The  25 
oral  grammar  lessons  from  the  first  year  to  the  middle  of  the 
fifth  year,  should  deal  chiefly  with  the  use  of  language,  gradually 
introducing  the  grammatical  technique  as  it  is  needed  to  describe 
accurately  the  correct  forms  and  the  usages  violated. 

Your  Committee  believes  that  there  is  some  danger  of  wast-S^ 
ing  the  time  of  the  pupil  in  these  oral  and  written  language 
lessons  in  the  first  four  years  by  confining  the  work  of  the 
pupil  to  the  expression  of  ordinary  commonplace  ideas  not 
related  to  the  subjects  of  his  other  lessons,  especially  when  the 
expression  is  confined  to  the  colloquial  vocabulary.  Such  35 
training  has  been  severely  and  justly  condemned  as  teaching 
what  is  called  prating  or  gabbling,  rather  than  a  noble  use  of 


92  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

English  speech.  It  is  clear  that  the  pupil  should  have  a  digni- 
fied and  worthy  subject  of  composition,  and  what  is  so  good 
for  his  purpose  as  the  themes  he  has  tried  to  master  in  his 
regular  lessons?  The  reading  lessons  will  give  matter  for 
5  literary  style,  the  geography  for  scientific  style,  and  the  arith- 
metic for  a  business  style  ;  for  all  styles  should  be  learned. 

Your  Committee  recommends  that  selected  lists  of  words 
difficult  to  spell  be  made  from  the  reading  lessons  and  mastered 
by  frequent  writing  and  oral  spelling  during  the  fourth,  fifth, 

loand  sixth  years. 

Your  Committee  recommends  that  the  use  of  a  text-book  in 
grammar  begin  with  the  second  half  of  the  fifth  year,  and  con- 
tinue until  the  beginning  of  the  study  of  Latin  in  the  eighth 
grade,  and  that  one  daily  lesson  of  twenty-five  or  thirty  min- 

ifiites  be  devoted  to  it. 
V    For  Latin  we  recommend  one  daily  lesson  of  thirty  minutes 
jifor  the  eighth  year.     For  arithmetic  we  recommend  number 
[work  from  the  first  year  to.  the  eighth,  one  lesson  each  day,  but 
the  use  of  the  text-book  in  number  should  not,  in  our  opinion, 

20  begin  until  the  first  quarter  of  the  third  year.  We  recommend 
that  the  applications  of  elementary  algebra  to  arithmetic,  as 
hereinbefore  explained,  be  substituted  for  pure  arithmetic  in 
the  seventh  and  eighth  years,  a  daily  lesson  being  given. 

Your  Committee  recommends  that  penmanship  as  a  separate 

25  branch  be  taught  in  the  first  six  years  at  least  three  lessons  per 
week. 

Geography,  in  the  opinion  of  your  Committee,  should  begin 
with  oral  lessons  in  the  second  year,  and  with  a  text-book  in  the 
third  quarter  of  the  third  year,  and  be  continued  to  the  close  of 

30  the  sixth  year  with  one  lesson  each  day,  and  in  the  seventh  and 
eighth  years  with  three  lessons  per  week. 

History  of  the  United  States  with  the  use  of  a  text-book, 
your  Committee  recommends  for  the  seventh  and  the  first  half 
of  the  eighth  year,  one  lesson  each  day;  the  Constitution  of 

35  the  United  States  for  the  third  quarter  of  the  eighth  year. 

The  following  schedule  will  show  the  number  of  lessons  per 
week  for  each  quarter  of  each  year : 


ox   CORRELATION   OF   STUDIES.  93 

Reading.     Eight  years,  with  daily  lessons. 

Penmanship.     Six  years,  ten  lessons  per  week  for  first  two  years,  five  for 
third  and  fourth,  and  three  for  fifth  and  sixth. 

Spelling  Lists.     Fourth,  fifth,  and  sixth  years,  four  lessons  per  week. 

Grammar.     Oral,  with  composition  or  dictation,  first  year  to  middle  of  fifth    5 
year,  text-book  from  middle  of  fifth  year  to  close  of  seventh  year,  five 
lessons  per  week.     (Composition  writing  should  be  included  under  this 
head.     But  the  written  examinations  on  the  several  branches  should  be 
counted  under  the  head  of  composition  work.) 

Latin  or  French  or  German.     Eighth  year,  five  lessons  per  week.  lo 

Ariiiimetic.     Oral  first  and  second  year,  text-book  third  to  sixth  year,  five 
lessons  per  week. 

Algebra.     Seventh  and  eighth  year,  five  lessons  per  week. 

Geography.     Oral  lessons  second  year  to  middle  of  third  year,  text-book 
from  middle  of  third  year,  five  lessons  weekly  to  seventh  year,  and  three  15 
lessons  to  close  of  eighth. 

Natural  Science  and  Hygiene.     Sixty  minutes  per  week,  eight  years. 

History  of  United  States.     Five  hours  per  week  seventh  year  and  first  half 
of  eighth  year. 

Constitution  of  United  States.     Third  quarter  in  the  eighth  year.  20 

General  History  and  Biography.     Oral  lessons,  sixty  minutes  a  week,  eight 
years. 

Physical  Culture.     Sixty  minutes  a  week,  eight  years. 

Vocal  Music.     Sixty  minutes  a  week,  eight  years. 

Drawing.     Sixty  minutes  a  week,  eight  years.  25 

Manual  Training,  Sewing  and  Cooking.     One-half  day  each  week  in  sev- 
enth and  eighth  years. 

Your  Committee  recommends  recitations  of  fifteen  minutes  in 
length  in  the  first  and  second  years,  of  twenty  minutes  in  length 
in  the  third  and  fourth  years,  of  twenty-five  minutes  in  the  fifth  30 
and  sixth  years,  and  of  thirty  minutes  in  the  seventh  and  eighth. 

The  results  of  this  programme  show  for  the  first  and  second 
years  twenty  lessons  a  week  of  fifteen  minutes  each,  besides  seven 
other  exercises  occupying  an.  average  of  twelve  minutes  apiece 
each  day;  the  total  amount  of  time  occupied  in  the  continuous  35 
attention  of  the  recitation  or  class  exercises  being  twelve  hours, 
or  an  average  of  two  hours  and  twenty-foiir  minutes  per  day. 

For  the  third  year  twenty  lessons  a  week  of  twenty  minutes 
each,  and  five  general  exercises  taking  up  five  hours  a  week  or  an 
average  of  one  hour  per  day,  giving  an  average  time  per  day  of  40 
two  hours  and  twenty  minutes  for  class  recitations  or  exercises. 

In  the  fourth    the  recitations   increase  to  twenty-four   (by 
reason  of  four  extra  lessons  in  spelling)  and  the  time  occupied 


94 


REPORT  OF  THE   COMMITTEE  OF   FIFTEEN 


in  recitations  and  exercises  to  thirteen  hours  and  an  average 
per  day  of  two  hours  thirty-six  minutes. 


Branches 

isi  year 

id  year 

idyear 

^thyear 

1 
Sthyear    f>thyear 

7thyear 

Zthyear 

Reading 

lo  lessons  a  week 

5  lessons  a  week 

Writing 

lo  lessons  a  week 

5  lessons  a  week         3  lessons  a  week 

Spelling  lists... 

1 
1 

4  lessons  a  week 

English 

Grammar 

Oral,  with  composition  lessons 

5  lessons  a  week  with 
text  book 

Latin 

5  lesso.is 

Arithmetic  .... 

0ral,6o  minutes 
a  week 

5  lessons  a  week  with  text-book 

Algebra 

1 
5  lessons  a  week   1 

Geography 

Oral,  6o  minutes  a  week 

*  5  lessons  a  week  with  text-book 

3  lessons  a  week   1 

Natural  Science 
+  Hygiene. 

Sixty  minutes  a  week 

U.  S.  History.. 

5  lessons  a 
week 

U.  S.  Constitu- 
tion 

•"•! 

General 

History 

Oral,  sixty  minutes  a  week 

Physical 

Culture 

Sixty  minutes  a  week 

Vocal  Music. . . 

Sixty  minutes  a  week 
divided  into  4  lessons 

Drawing 

Sixty  minutes  a  week 

Manual    Train. 

or  Sewing  -\- 

Cookery. 

1 
1 

One-half  day  each 

No.  of  Lessons 

daily 
exer. 

20+7 
daily 
exer. 

20+5 
daily 
exer. 

daily 
exer. 

daily 
exer. 

daily 
exer. 

23+6 
daily 
exer. 

23^6 

daily 
exer. 

Total  Hours  of 
Recitations 

12                12 
1 

xi§ 

13 

i6i 

i6i 

i7i 

I7i 

Length  of  Reci- 
tions 

15  mm. 

15  min. 

20  min. 

20  min. 

25  min. 

25  min. 

30  min. 

30  min. 

*  Begins  in  second  half  year 


In   the   fifth   and   sixth   years   the    number   of   recitations 
increases  to  twenty-seven  per  week,  owing  to  the  addition  of 


ON   CORRELATION   OF  STUDIES.  95 

formal  grammar,  and  the  total  number  of  hours  required  for 
all  is  1 6^  per  week,  or  an  average  of  3^  per  day. 

In  the  seventh  and  eighth  years  the  number  of  lessons 
decreases  to  twenty-three,  history  being  added,  penmanship 
and  special  lessons  in  spelling  discontinued,  the  time  devoted  5 
to  geography  reduced  to  three  lessons  a  week.  But  the  reci- 
tation is  increased  to  thirty  minutes  in  length.  Manual  train- 
ing occupies  a  half-day,  or  2J^  hours,  each  week.  The  total  is 
19  hours  per  week  or  3^  per  day. 

The  foregoing  tabular  exhibit  shows  all  of  these  particulars.  10 

IV.   METHODS  AND  ORGANIZATION 

Your  Committee  is  agreed  that  the  time  devoted  to  the 
elementary  school  work  should  not  be  reduced  from  eight 
years,  but  they  have  recommended,  as  hereinbefore  stated,  that 
in  the  seventh  and  eighth  years  a  modified  form  of  algebra  be 
introduced  in  place  of  advanced  arithmetic,  and  that  in  the  15 
eighth  year  English  grammar  yield  place  to  Latin.  This 
makes,  in  their  opinion,  a  proper  transition  to  the  studies  of 
the  secondary  school  and  is  calculated  to  assist  the  pupil 
materially  in  his  preparation  for  that  work.  Hitherto,  the 
change  from  the  work  of  the  elementary  school  has  been  too  20 
abrupt,  the  pupil  beginning  three  formal  studies  at  once, 
namely  algebra,  physical  geography,  and  Latin. 

Your  Committee  has  found  it  necessary  to  discuss  the  ques- 
tion of  methods  of  teaching  in  numerous  instances,  while  con- 
sidering the  question  of  educational  values  and  programmes,  25 
because    the   value   and   time   of    beginning   of    the   several 
branches  depends  so  largely  on  the  method  of  teaching. 

The  following  recommendations,  however,  remain  for  this 
part  of  their  report : 

They  would  recommend  that  the  specialization  of  teachers'  30 
work  should  not  be  attempted  before  the  seventh  or  eighth 
year  of  the  elementary  school  and  in  not  more  than  one  or 
two  studies  then.  In  the  secondary  school  it  is  expected  that 
a  teacher  v/ill  teach  one  or  at  most  two  branches.  In  the  ele- 
mentary school,  for  at  least  six  years,  it  is  better,  on  the  whole,  35 


96  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

to  have  each  teacher  instruct  his  pupils  in  all  the  branches  that 
they  study,  for  the  reason  that  only  in  this  way  can  he  hold  an 
even  pressure  on  the  requirementsof  work,  correlating  it  insuch 
a  manner  that  no  one  study  absorbs  undue  attention.  In  this 
sway  the  pupils  prepare  all  their  lessons  under  the  direct  super- 
vision  of  the  same  teacher,  and  by  their  recitations  show  what 
defects  of  methods  of  study  there  have  been  in  the  preparation^ 
The  ethical  training  is  much  more  successful  under  this  plan 
because  the  personal  influence  of  a  teacher  is  much  greater 

10  when  he  or  she  knows  minutely  the  entire  scope  of  the  schoo 
work.  In  the  case  of  the  special  teacher  the  responsibility  v. 
divided  and  the  opportunities  of  special  aquaintance  with  char 
acter  and  habits  diminished. 

With  one  teacher,  who  supervises  the  study  and  hears  all  th( 

15  recitations,  there  is  a  much  better  opportunity  to  cultivate  the 
two  kinds  of  attention.  The  teacher  divides  his  pupils  into 
two  classes  and  hears  one  recite  while  the  other  class  prepares 
for  the  next  lesson.  The  pupils  reciting  are  required  to  pay 
strict  attention  to  the  one  of  their  number  who  is  explaining 

20  the  point  assigned  him  by  the  teacher — they  are  to  be  on  th( 
alert  to  notice  any  mistakes  of  statement  or  omissions  of  im- 
portant data,  they  are  at  the  same  time  to  pay  close  attention 
to  the  remarks  of  the  teacher.  This  is  one  kind  of  attention, 
which  may  be  called  associated  critical  attention.     The  pupils 

25 engaged  in  the  preparation  of  the  next  lesson  are  busy,  each 
one  by  himself,  studying  the  book  and  mastering  its  facts  and 
ideas,  and  comparing  them  one  with  another,  and  making  th( 
effort  to  become  oblivious  of  their  fellow-pupils,  the  recitation 
going  on,  and  the  teacher.     This  is  another  kind  of  attention, 

30  which  is  not  associated,  but  an  individual  effort  to  master  foi 
one's  self  without  aid  a  prescribed  task  and  to  resist  all  dis- 
tracting  influences.  These  two  disciplines  in  attention  are  the 
best  formal  training  that  the  school  affords. 

Your  Committee  has  already  mentioned  a  species  of  faulty 

35  correlation  wherein  the  attempt  is  made  to  study  all  branches 
in  each,  misapplying  Jacotot's  maxim, ''  all  is  in  all  "  {tou^  est^ 
dans  touf). 


ON   CORRELATION   OF  STUDIES.  97 

A  frequent  error  of  this  kind  is  the  practice  of  making  every 
recitation  a  language  lesson,  and  interrupting  the  arithmetic, 
geography,  history,  literature,  or  whatever  it  may  be,  by  call- 
ing the  pupil's  attention  abruptly  to  something  in  his  forms  of 
expression,  his  pronunciation,  or  to  some  faulty  use  of  English  ;  5 
thus  turning  the  entire  system  of  school  work  into  a  series  of 
grammar  exercises  and  weakening  the  power  of  continuous 
thought  on  the  objective~contents  of  the  several  branches,  by 
creating  a  pernicious  habit  of  self-consciousness  in  the  matter  of 
verbal  expression.  While  your  Committee  would  not  venture  10 
to  say  that  there  should  not  be  some  degree  of  attention  to  the 
verbal  expression  in  all  lessons,  it  is  of  the  opinion  that  it  should 
be  limited  to  criticism  of  the  recitation  for  its  want  of  techni- 
cal accuracy.  The  technical  words  in  each  branch  should  be 
discussed  until  the  pupil  is  familiar  with  their  full  force.  The  15 
faulty  English  should  be  criticised  as  showing  confusion  of 
thought  or  memory,  and  should  be  corrected  in  this  sense. 
But  solecisms  of  speech  should  be  silently  noted  by  the  teacher 
for  discussion  in  the  regular  language  lesson. 

The  question  of  promotion  of  pupils  has  occupied  from  time  20 
to  time  very  much  attention.     Your  Committee  believes  that  in 
many  systems  of  elementary  schools,  there  is  injury  done  by 
too  much  formality  in  ascertaining  whether  the  pupils  of  a 
given  class  have  completed  the  work  up  to  a  given  arbitrarily 
fixed  point,  and  are  ready  to  take  up  the  next  apportionment  25 
of  the  work.     In  the  early  days  of  city  school  systems,  when 
the  office  of  superintendent  was  first  created,  it  was  thought 
necessary  to  divide  up  the  graded  course  of  study  into  years 
of  work,  and  to  hold  stated  annual  examinations  to  ascertain 
how  many  pupils  could  be  promoted  to  the  next  grade  or  30 
year's  work.     All  that  failed  at  this  examination  were  set  back 
;  t  the  beginning  of  the  year's  work  to  spend  another  year  in 
reviewing  it.     This  was  to  meet  the  convenience  of  the  super- 
intendent who,  it  was  said,  could  not  hold  examinations  to  suit 
the  wants  of  individuals  or  particular  classes.    From  this  arrange-  35 
ment  there  naturally  resulted  a  great  deal  of  what  is  called 
"  marking  time."     Pupils  who  had  nearly  completed  the  work  of 


98  REPORT   OF   THE   COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN 

the  year  were  placed  with  pupils  who  had  been  till  now  a  year's 
interval  below  them.  Disco  jragement  and  demoralization  at 
the  thought  of  taking  up  again  a  course  of  lessons  learned 
once  before  caused  many  pupils  to  leave  school  prematurely. 
5  This  evil  has  been  remedied  in  nearly  one-half  of  the  cities 
by  promoting  pupils  whenever  they  have  completed  the  work 
of  a  grade.  The  constant  tendency  of  classification  to  become 
imperfect  by  reason  of  the  difference  in  rates  of  advancement 
of  the  several  pupils,  owing  to  disparity  in  ages,  degree  of 

lo  maturity,  temperament,  and  health,  makes  frequent  reclassifica- 
tion necessary.  This  is  easily  accomplished  by  promoting  the 
few  pupils  who  distance  the  majority  of  their  classmates  into 
the  next  class  above,  separated  as  it  is  or  ought  to  be,  by  an 
interval  of  less  than  half  a  year.     The  bright  pupils  thus  pro- 

i5moted  have  to  struggle  to  make  up  the  ground  covered  in  the 
interval  between  the  two  classes,  but  they  are  nearly  always 
able  to  accomplish  this,  and  generally  will  in  two  years'  time 
need  another  promotion  from  class  to  class. 

The  Procrustean  character  of  the  old  city  systems  has  been 

20  removed  by  this  device. 

There  remain  for  mention  some  other  evils  besides  bad 
systems  of  promotion  due  to  defects  of  organization.  The 
school  buildings  are  often  with  superstitious  care  kept  apart 
exclusively  for  particular  grades  of  pupils.     The  central  build- 

25  ing  erected  for  high  school  purposes,  though  only  half  filled, 
is  not  made  to  relieve  the  neighboring  grammar  school, 
crowded  to  such  a  degree  that  it  cannot  receive  the  classes 
which  ought  to  be  promoted  from  the  primary  schools.  It 
has  happened  in  such  cases  that  this  superstition  prevailed  so 

30  far  that  the  pupils  in  the  primary  school  building  were  kept  at 
work  on  studies  already  finished,  because  they  could  not  be 
transferred  to  the  grammar  school. 

In  all  good  school  systems  the  pupils  take  up  new  work 
when  they  have  completed  the  old,  and  the  bright  pupils  are 

35  transferred  to  higher  classes  when  they  have  so  far  distanced 
their  fellows  that  the  amount  of  work  fixed  for  the  averagre 
ability  of  the  class  does  not  give  them  enough  to  do. 


ON   CORRELATION   OF   STUDIES.  99 

In  conclusion  your  Committee  would  state,  by  way  of  expla- 
nation, that  it  has  been  led  into  many  digressions,  in  illus- 
trating the  details  of  its  recommendations  in  this  report, 
through  its  desire  to  make  clear  the  grounds  on  which  it 
has  based  its  conclusions  and  through  the  hope  that  such  $ 
details  will  call  out  a  still  more  thorough-going  discussion  of 
the  educational  values  of  branches  proposed  for  elementary 
schools,  and  of  the  methods  by  which  those  branches  may  be 
successfully  taught. 

With  a  view  to  increase  the  interest  in  this  subject  yourio 
Committee  recommends  the  publication  of  selected  passages 
from  the  papers  sent  in  by  invited  auxiliary  committees  and 
by  volunteers,  many  of  these  containing  valuable  suggestions 
not  mentioned  in  this  report. 

William  T.  Harris,  Chairman 

United  States  Commissioner  of  Education,  Washington,  D.  C. 


I   dissent  from  the  majority  report  of  the  Committee  in  15 
regard  to  the  following  points : 

Arithmetic 

I.  As  to  fractions :  In  teaching  arithmetic  there  does  not 
exist  any  greater  difficulty  in  getting  small  children  to  grasp 
the  nature  of  the  fraction  as  such  than  in  getting  them  to 
grasp  the  idea  of  the  simpler  whole  numbers.     It  is  true  that  20 
the  fractions  ^,  ^,  j{,  etc.,  as  symbols,  are  a  little  more  com- 
plex than  are  the  single  digits ;  but  as  to  the  real  meaning, 
when  once  the    fractional  idea  has  beem  properly  developed 
by    the    teacher   and    the    significance    of    the    idea    appre- 
hended   by   the   pupil,    it*  is    as    easily    understood    as    any  25 
other  simple   truth.     Children   get   the   idea   of  half   third, 
or  quarter  of  many   things  long   before  they   enter   school, 
and   they   will   as  readily   learn   to    add,    subtract,  multiply, 
and  divide  fractions  as  they  will  whole  numbers.     In  using 
fractions  they  will  draw  diagrams  and  pictures  representing  30 
the  processes  of  work  as  quickly  and  easily  as  tliey  illustrate 


ICX)  REPORT   OF   THE  COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN 

similar  work  with  integers.  It  is  of  course  assumed  that 
the  teacher  knows  how  to  teach  arithmetic  to  children,  or 
rather,  how  to  teach  the  children  how  to  teach  themselves. 
There  is  really  no  valid  argument  why  children  in  the  second, 
5  third,  and  fourth  years  in  school  should  not  master  the  fun- 
damental operations  in  fractions.  Not  only  this,  they  will 
put  the  more  common  fractions  into  the  technique  of  per- 
centage, and  do  this  as  well  in  the  second  and  third  grades  as 
at  any  other  time  in  their  future  progress.     There  is  only  one 

lonew  idea  involved  in  this  operation,  and  that  consists  in  giving 
an  additional  term — per  cent. — to  the  fractional  symbol. 
When  one  number  is  a  part  of  another,  it  may  be  regarded  as 
a  fractional  part  or  as  such  a  per  cent,  of  it.  A  great  deal  of 
percentage  is  thus  learned  by  the  pupils  early  in  the  course. 

15  Children  are  not  hurt  by  learning.  Standing  still  and  lost 
motion  kill. 

Every  recitation  should  reach  the  full  swing  of  the  learner's 
mind,  including  all  his  acquisitions  on  any  given  topic.  But 
if  the  teaching  of  fractions  be  deferred,  as  it  usually  is  in  most 

20  schools,  the  time  may  be  materially  shortened  by  teaching 
addition  and  subtraction  of  fractions  together.  This  is  simple 
enough  if  different  fractions  having  common  denominators  are 
used  at  first,  such  as  | -|-  f  =  ?,  and  |  —  |  =  ?  Then  the  next 
step,  after  sufficient  drill  on  this  case,  is  to  take  two  fractions 

25  (simple)  of  different  units  of  value,  as  ^  -\-  y^  =?,  and 
^  —  ^  =  ?  MultipHcation  and  division  may  be  treated 
similarly. 

In  decimals,  the  pupil  is  really  confronted  by  a  simpler  form 
of  fractions  than  thef  varied  forms  of  common  fractions. 

30  Devices  and  illustrations  of  a  material  kind  are  necessary  to 
build  up  in  the  pupil's  mind  at  the  beginning  a  clear  concept 
of  a  tenth,  etc.,  etc.,  and  then  to  show  that  one-tenth  written 
as  a  decimal  is  only  a  shorthand  way  of  writing  yV  ^s  a  com* 
mon  fraction,  and  so  on.     He  sees  very  soon  that  the  deci- 

35mal  is  only  a  shorthand  common  fraction,  and  this  notion 
he  must  hold  to.  This  is  the  vital  point  in  decimals.  The 
idea  that  they  can  be  changed   into  common   fractions  and 


ON  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  Id 

the  reverse  at  will,  establishes  the  fact  in  the  pupil's  mind 
that  they  are  common  fractions  and  not  uncommon  ones. 
Fixing  the  decimal  point  will,  in  a  short  time,  take  care  of 
itself. 

In  teaching  arithmetic  the  steps  are  :  (i)  developing  the  5 
subject  till  each  pupil  gets  a  clear  conception  of  it ;  (2) 
necessary  drill  to  fix  the  process ;  (3)  connecting  the  sub- 
ject with  all  that  has  preceded  it ;  (4)  its  applications ;  (5) 
the  pupil's  ability  to  sum  up  clearly  and  concisely  what  he 
has  learned.  10 

2.  As  to  abridgment :  Under  this  head,  I  hold  that  a  course 
in  arithmetic,  including  simple  numbers,  fractions,  tables  of 
weights  and  measures,  percentage  and  interest,  and  numerical 
operations  in  powers,  does  not  fit  a  pupil  to  begin  the  study  of 
algebra.  That  while  he  may  carry  the  book  under  his  arm  to  15 
the  schoolroom,  he  is  too  poorly  equipped  to  make  headway 
on  this  subject,  and  instead  of  finishing  up  algebra  in  a  reason- 
able length  of  time  he  is  kept  too  long  at  it,  with  a  strong 
probability  of  his  becoming  disgusted  with  it. 

There  are  subjects,  however,  in  the  common  school  arith-20 
metic  that  may  be  dropped  out  with  great  advantage,  to  wit, 
all  but  the  simplest  exercises  in  compound  interest,  foreign 
exchange,  all  foreign  moneys  (except  reference  tables  of 
values),  annuities,  alligation,  progression ;  and  the  entire  sub- 
jects of  percentage  and  interest  should  be  condensed  into  25 
about  twenty  pages. 

Cancellation,  factoring,  proportion,  evolution,  and  involution 
should  be  retained.  Cancellation  and  factoring  should  be 
strongly  emphasized  owing  to  their  immense  value  in 
shortening  work  in  arithmetic,  algebra,  and  in  more  ad- 30 
vanced  subjects.  Some  drill  in  the  Metric  System  should 
not  be  omitted. 

J.  As  to  mental  arithmetic :  Till  the  end  of  the  fourth  year 
the  pupil  does  not  need  a  text-book  of  mental  arithmetic.     So 
far  his  work  in  arithmetic  should   be   about  equally  divided  35 
between  written  and  mental.     At  the  beginning  of  the  fifth 
year,  in  addition  to  his  written  arithmetic,  he  should  begin  a 


I02  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

mental  arithmetic  and  continue  it  three  years,  reciting  at  least 
four  mental  arithmetic  lessons  each  week.  The  length  of  the 
recitation  should  be  twenty  minutes.  A  pupil  well  drilled  in 
mental  arithmetic  at  the  end  of  the  seventh  year,  if  the  school 
5  age  begins  at  six,  is  far  better  prepared  to  study  algebra  than  the 
one  who  has  not  had  such  a  drill.  There  are  a  few  problems  in 
arithmetic  that  can  be  solved  more  easily  by  algebra  than  by  the 
ordinary  processes  of  arithmetic,  but  there  are  many  numerical 
problems  in  equations  of  the  first  degree  that  can  be  more 

lo  easily  handled  by  mental  arithmetic  than  by  algebra.     To  attack 
arithmetical  problems  by  algebra  is  very  much  like  using  a 
tremendous  lever  to  lift  a  feather.     Those  who  have  found  a 
great  stumbling-block  in  arithmetical  "  conundrums,"  have,  if  ij 
the  inside  facts  were  known,  been  looking  in  the  wrong  direc- 

iStion.      A  deficiency  of  "number-brain-cells"  will    afford    an  ^ 
adequate  explanation.  I 

^.  Rearra7igcme7it  of  subjects :  There  should  be  a  rearrang- 
ing of  the  topics  in  arithmetic  so  that  one  subject  naturally 
leads  up  to  the  next.     As  an  illustration,  it  is  easily  seen  that 

20  whole  numbers  and  fractions  can  be  treated  together,  and  that 
with  United  States  money,  when  the  dime  is  reached,  is  the 
proper  time  to  begin  decimals,  and  that  when  "  a  square  "  in 
surface  measure  first  comes  up,  the  next  step  is  the  square  of  a 
number  as  well  as  its  square  root,  and  that  solid  measure  logic- 

25  ally  lands  the  learner  among  cubes  and  cube-roots.  When  he 
learns  that  1728  cubic  inches  make  one  cubic  foot  he  is  pre- 
pared to  find  the  edge  of  the  cube.  What  is  meant  here  is 
pointing  the  way  to  the  next  above.  All  depends  upon  the 
teacher's  ability  to  lead  the  pupil  to  see  conditions  and  rela- 

Sotions.  My  contention  is  that  truth,  so  far  as  one  is  capable  of 
taking  hold  of  it  when  it  is  properly  presented,  is  always  a 
simple  affair. 

5.  As  to  algebra  :  If  algebra  be  commenced  at  the  middle  of 
the  seventh  year,  let  the  pupil  go  at  it  in  earnest,  and  keep  at 

35  it  till  he  has  mastered  it.  Here  the  best  opportunities  will  be 
afforded  him  to  connect  his  algebraic  knowledge  to  his  arith- 
metical knowledge.     He  builds  the  one  on  top  of  the  other. 


ON   CORRELATION   OF   STUDIES.  IO3 

The  skillful  teacher  always  insists  that  the  learner  shall  estab- 
lish and  maintain  this  relationship  between  the  two  subjects. 
To  switch  around  the  other  way  appears  to  me  to  be  the  same 
as  to  omit  certain  exercises  in  the  common  algebra,  because 
they  are  more  briefly  and  elegantly  treated  in  the  calculus.  It  5 
is  admitted  that  a  higher  branch  of  mathematics  often  throws 
much  light  on  the  lower  branches,  but  these  side-lights  should 
be  employed  for  the  purpose  of  leading  the  learner  onward  to 
broader  generalizations.  Unless  one  sees  the  lower  clearly,  the 
higher  is  obscure.  Build  solidly  the  foundation  on  arith- 10 
metic — written  and  mental — and  the  higher  branches  will  be 
more  easily  mastered  and  time  saved. 

History  of  the  United  States 

In  teaching  this  branch  in  the  public  schools,  there  does  not 
appear,  so  far  as  I  can  see,  any  substantial  reason  why  the 
pupils  should  not  study  and  recite  the  history  of  the  Rebel- 15 
lion  in  the  same  manner  that  they  do  the  Revolutionary  War. 
The  pupils  discuss  the  late  war  and  the  causes  that  led  to  it 
with  an  impartiality  of  feehng  that  speaks  more  for  their  good 
sense  and  clear  judgment  than  any  other  way  by  which  their 
knowledge  can  be  tested.  They  may  not  get  hold  of  all  20 
the  causes  involved  in  that  conflict,  but  they  get  enough  to 
understand  the  motives  which  caused  the  armies  to  fight  so 
heroically,  and  why  the  people,  both  North  and  South,  staked 
everything  on  the  issue.  Just  as  the  men  who  faced  each 
other  for  four  years  and  met  so  often  in  a  death  grapple  will  25 
sit  down  now  and  quietly  talk  over  their  trials,  sufferings,  and 
conflicts,  so  do  their  children  talk  over  these  same  stirring 
scenes.  They,  too,  so  far  as  my  experience  extends,  are 
singularly  free  from  bitterness  and  prejudice.  It  is  certainly 
a  period  of  history  that  they  should  study.  30 

The  spelling-book 

In   addition   to   the    "  spelling-lists,"    I   would   supplement 
with  a  good  spelling-book.     So  far,  no  "  word-list,''  however 


104  REPORT  OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

well  selected,  has  supplied  the  place  of  a  spelling-book. 
All  those  schools  that  threw  out  the  spelling-book  and 
undertook  to  teach  spelling  incidentally  or  by  word-lists  failed, 
and  for  the  same  reason  that  grammar,  arithmetic,  geography, 
sand  other  branches,  cannot  be  taught  incidentally  as  the  pupil 
or  the  class  reads  Robinson  Crusoe,  or  any  other  similar  work.j 
It  is  an  independent  study  and  as  such  should  be  pursued. 

James  M.  Greenwood, 
Superintendent  of  Schools,  Kansas  City,  Mo. 


While  affixing  my  signature  to  the  report  of  this  Committee 
as  expressing  substantial   agreement  with  most  of  its  leading 

lo  propositions,  I  beg  leave  also  to  indicate  my  dissent  from  cer- 
tain of  its  recommendations  and  to  suggest  certain  additions 
which,  in  my  judgment,  the  report  requires. 

I.  There  are  other  forms  of  true  correlation  which  should: 
be  included  with  the  four  mentioned  in  the  first  part  of  the 

15  report  and  which  should  be  as  clearly  and  fully  treated  as  are 
these  four. 

The  first  is  that  form  of  correlation  which  is  popularly 
understood  by  the  name,  and  which  is  also  called  by  some 
writers,  concentration,  co-ordination,  unification,  and  alludes 

20  in  general  to  a  division  of  studies  into  content  and  form  ;  by 
content  meaning  that  upon  which  it  is  fitting  that  the  mind  ot 
the  child  should  dwell,  and  by  form  the  means  or  modes  of 
expression  by  which  thoughts  are  communicated.  Or,  it  may 
be  thus  expressed  :  The  true  content  of  education  is,  (i),  phi- 

25  losophy  or  the  knowledge  of  man  as  to  his  motives  and  hidden 
springs  of  action  indicated  in  history  and  literature,  and  (2), 
science,  the  knowledge  of  nature  and  its  manifestations  and 
laws.  Its  form  is  art,  which  is  the  deliberate,  purposeful,  and 
effective  expression  to  others  of  that  which  has  been  produced 

30  within  man  by  contact  with  other  men  and  with  nature,  and  is 
commonly  referred  to  as  divided  into  various  arts,  such  as 
reading,  writing,  drawing,  making,  and  modeling.  The  relation 
of  content  and  form  is  that  of  principle  and  subordinate,  the 


ON  CORRELATION   OF  STUDIES.  I05 

latter   receiving   its  chief  value  from  the  former.     In  a  true 
education  they  are  so  presented  to  the  mind  of  the  child  that 
he  instinctively  and  unconsciously  grasps  this  relation  and  is 
thereby  lifted  into  a  higher  plane  of  thinking  and  living  than 
if  the  various  arts  are  taught,  as  they  too  commonly  are,  with-  5 
out  reference  to  a  noble  content.     This  relation  of  form  to 
content  is  vaguely  referred   to   in   the   report,   but   nowhere 
definitely  treated.     It  seems  to  me  that  it  is  a  true  form  of 
correlation,  and,  as   such,  deserves  special  and  definite  treat-" 
mcnt.    IMoreover,  it  is  at  present  much  in  the  minds  of  the  10 
ccachers  of  this  country,  often  in  forms  that  are  misleading 
and  harmful.     The  fact  that  it  adds  the  important  element  of 
interest  to  the  dry  details  of  common  school  life  makes  it 
especially  attractive  to  progressive  and  earnest  teachers,  and 
this  Committee  should  recognize  its  importance  and  make  such  15 
nn  utterance  upon  it  as  will  guide  the  average  teacher  to  a 
clear  comprehension  of  its  meaning  and  to  a  wise  use  of  it  in 
the  schoolroom. 

Second,  there  is  a  still  higher  form  of  correlation  which  is 
definitely  referred  to  later  in  the  report  as  that  *'  of  the  several  20 
branches  of  human  learning  in  the  unity  of  the  spiritual  view 
furnished  by  religion  to  our  civilization."     This  in  the  report 
IS   assigned  absolutely  to  the  province  of  higher  education. 
While  I  do  not  wish  to  dissent  wholly  from  this  view,  since  it 
is  doubtless  true  that  this  higher  unity  cannot  be  comprehen-  25 
sively  stated  for  the  use  of  a  child,  yet  a  wise  teacher  can  so 
present  subjects  to  even  a  young  child  that  a  sense  of  the  unity 
of  all  knowledge  will,  to  a  certain  degree,  be  unconsciously 
developed  in  his  mind.     In   regard  to  certain  of  the  great 
divisions  of  human  knowledge,  this  relation  is  so  evident  that  30 
they  cannot  be  properly  presented  at  all  unless  the  relation  be 
made  clear.     Such  studies  are  history  and  geography. 

2.  The    recommendations    upon   the    subject   of   language 
should  be  broadened  to  cover  the  production  of  good  English 
by  the  child  himself,  with  the  suggestion  of  suitable  topics  and  35 
proper  methods.     This  report  confines  itself  to  the  absorptive 
side  of  education  and  ignores  that  development  of  power  over 


I06  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

nature,  man,  and  self,  which  comes  from  free  exercise  of  facul- 
ties and  free  expression  of  thought.  The  study  of  language 
as  something  for  the  child  to  use  himself,  the  great  means  by 
which  he  is  to  assert  his  place  in  civiHzation,  and  exert  hisj 
5  influence  for  good,  is  nowhere  referred  to  except  in  the  vaguest] 
way.  This  statement  in  regard  to  language  applies  almost 
equally  well  to  drawing,  and  here  is  made  evident  the  impor* 
tance  of  the  form  of  correlation  to  which  I  have  just  referred.^ 
The  proper  material  for  the  training  of  the  child  in  expression- 

lois  that  which  is  furnished  by  the  study  of  man  and  nature. 
His  mind  being  filled  with  high  themes,  he  asserts  his  individu- 
ality, expresses  himself  in  regard  to  them,  and  thereby  gains 
at  once  both  a  closer  and  clearer  comprehension  of  what  he 
has  studied,  and  also  the  power  by  which  he  may  become  a 

15  factor  in  his  generation. 

3.  I  would  wish  to  omit  the  word  "  weekly  '*  where  it  occurs 
in  the  discussion  of  the  subjects  of  general  history  and  science, 
unless  it  be  understood  to  mean  that  an  amount  of  time  in  the 
school  year  equivalent  to  sixty  minutes  weekly  be  given  to 

20  each  of  these  subjects.  It  is  often  better  to  condense  these 
studies  into  certain  portions  of  the  year,  giving  more  time  to 
them  each  week  and  using  them  as  the  basis,  to  a  certain 
degree,  of  language  work.  I  believe  that,  especially  with 
young  children,  clearer  concepts  are  produced  by  such  con- 

25  nected  study,  pursued  for  fewer  weeks,  than  by  lessons  seven 
days  apart. 

4.  In  my  judgment  manual  training  should  not  be  limited 
to  the  seventh  and  eighth  grades,  but  should  begin  in  the 
kindergarten  with  the  simple  study  of  form  from  objects  and 

30  the  reproduction  in  paper  of  the  objects  presented,  and  should 
extend,  in  a  series  of  carefully  graded  lessons,  through  all  the 
grades,  leaving,  however,  the  heavier  tools,  such  as  the  plane, 
for  the  seventh  and  eighth  grades.  By  these  means  an  inter-, 
est  is  kept  up  in  the  various  human  industries,  sympathy  for| 

35  all  labor  is  created,  and  a  certain  degree  of  skill  is  developed ; 
moreover  the  interest  of  the  pupils  in  their  school  is  greatly 
enhanced.     Manual  training  has  often  proved  the  magnet  by 


ON   CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  I07 

which  boys  at  the  restless  age  have  been  kept  in  school  instead 
of  leaving  for  some  gainful  occupation. 

5.  I  desire  to  suggest  that  geometry  may  be  so  taught  as  to 
be  a  better  mathematical  study  than  algebra  to  succeed  or  ac- 
company arithmetic  in  the  seventh  and  eighth  grades.  I  do  not  5 
refer  particularly  to  inventional  geometry,  to  which  the  Com- 
mittee accords  a  slighting  attention,  but  to  constructive  geom- 
etry and  the  simplest  propositions  in  demonstrative  geometry, 
thus  involving  the  comprehension  of  the  elementary  geometric 
forms  and  their  more  obvious  relations.  This  study  may  be  10 
made  of  especial  interest  in  connection  with  manual  training 
and  drawing,  while  it  presents  fewer  difficulties  to  the  imma- 
ture mind  than  the  abstractions  of  algebra,  since  it  connects 
more  directly  with  the  concrete,  by  which  its  presentation  may 
often  be  aided.  15 

6.  While  agreeing  fully  with  the  majority  of  the  Committee 
that  the  full  scientific  method  should  not  be  applied  to  the 
study  of  elementary  science  by  young  children,  yet  I  am  com- 
pelled to  favor  more  of  experimentation  and  observation  by 
the  child,  and  less  of  telling  by  the  teacher  than  the  report  20 
would  seem  to  favor. 

7.  I  would  go  farther  than  the  majority  of  the  Committee, 
and  insist  that,  except  in  rare  cases,  there  should  be  no  special- 
ization of  the  teaching  force  below  the  High  School,  and  that 
even  in  the  first  years  of  the  High  School,  so  far  as  possible,  25 
specialization  should  be  subordinated  to  a  general  care  of  the 
child's  welfare  and  oversight  of  his  methods  of  study,  which 
are  impossible  when  a  corps  of  teachers  give  instruction,  each 
in  one  subject,  and  see  the  student  only  during  the  hour  of 
recitation.  30 

8.  While  in  the  main  I  agree  with  the  bald  statements  under 
the  head  "  Correlation  by  synthesis  of  studies,"  since  reference 
is  made  to  only  a  very  artificial  mode  of  synthesis  not  at  all  in 
vogue  in  this  country,  I  must  dissent  emphatically  from  this 
portion  of  the  report  as  by  inference  condemning  a  most  im-35 
portant  department  of  correlation,  to  which  I  have  referred 
earlier.     The  doctrinej)f  concentration  is  not  necessarily  arti- 


I08  REPORT  OF  THE  COMMITTEE  OF  FIFTEEN 

ficial ;  rather  it  refers  to  the  higher  unity,  of  which  this  Com- 
mittee has  spoken  in  glowing  terms  as  belonging  to  the  prov- 
ince of  higher  education.     It  also  includes  the  division  of  the 
school  curriculum  into  content  and  form,  which  this  Committee 
5  inferentially   adopts  in  its  treatment  of  language.     I  do  not 
believe,  any  more  than  do  the   majority  of  the  Committee, 
that  the  entire  course  of  study  can  be  literally  and  exactly^ 
centered  about  a  single  subject,  nor  do  I  believe  in  any  art 
ficial  correlation ;  but  there  is  a  natural  relation  of  all  know! 
lo  edges,  which  this  Committee   admits  in  various  places,  an 
which  is  the  basis  of  a  proper  synthesis  of  studies,  according; 
to  the  psychological  principal  of  apperception.  ll 

9.  If  by  the  term  "  oral,"  as  applied  to  lessons  in  biography 
and  in  natural  science,  the  Committee  means,  as  the  word  woul 

15  imply,  that  the  instruction  is  to  be  given  in  the  form  of  le 
tures  by  the  teacher,  I  cannot  in  full  agree  with  the  Commi 
tee's  conclusions.  As  I  have  already  stated,  in  natural  science 
the  work  should  be  largely  that  of  observation,  and  in  history 
and  biography,  while  in  the  very  lowest  grades  the  teachen 

20  should  tell  the  children  stories,  as  soon  as  it  is  possible  th 
desired  information  should  be  obtained  by  the  student  through 
reading.     To  this  end  the  reading  lesson  in  school  should  b 
properly  correlated  with  his  other  studies,  and  he  should  bl 
advised   as   to    his    home    reading.      The   information   thui 

25  obtained  should  be  the  subject  of  conversation  in  the  class 
and  should  furnish  the  material  for  much  of  the  written  Ian 
guage  work  of  the  children. 

10.  I  must  dissent  emphatically  and  entirely  from  that  pof 
tion  of  the  report  which   recommends   that   a   text-book   iif 

30  grammar  be  introduced  into  the  fifth  year  of  the  child's  school 
life.  It  is  a  question  in  my  mind  whether  it  would  not  bi 
better  if  the  text-book  were  not  introduced  into  the  grades 
below  the  High  School  at  all.  Certainly  it  should  not  appear 
before  the  seventh  year.     Such  knowledge  of  grammar  as  will 

35  familiarize  the  child  with  the  structure  of  the  sentence,  th 
basis  of  all  language,  and  as  will  enable  him  to  use  correctl 
forms  of  speech  which  the  necessities  of  expression  requir 


ON  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  IO9 

should  be  given  orally  by  the  teacher  in  connection  with  the 
child's  written  work,  when  needed  ;  but  against  the  introduction 
of  a  text-book  upon  grammar,  the  most  abstruse  of  all  the- sub- 
jects of  the  school  curriculum,  when  the  pupil  is  not  more  than 
ten   years  old,   I   must  protest.      Instead    of  that   the   child   5 
should  devote  much  time,  some  every  day,  to  writing  upon 
proper  themes  in  the  best  English  he  can  command,  furnish 
ing  occasion  to  the  teacher  to  correct  such  errors  as  he  may 
make,  and  acquiring   by  use  acquaintance  wi^th   the   correct 
forms  of  grammar.     If,  as  will  doubtless  be  the  case  in  most  10 
cities,  local  conditions  render  the  introduction  of  Latin  into 
the  eighth  grade  inadvisable,  this  study  of  grammar  may  be 
made  in  that  grade  somewhat  more  intensive. 

II.  If  by  a  text-book  in  geography  is  meant  that  which  is 
commonly  understood  by  the  term,  and  not  simply  geographi- 15 
cal  reading  matter,  in  my  judgment,  it  should  not  be  intro- 
duced earlier  than  the  fifth  year. 

These  suggestions  and  expressions  of  dissent,  if  approved 
by  the  Committee,  would  necessitate  some  change  in  the  pro- 
gramme submitted,  the  most  important  of  which  would  be  the  20 
making  room  for  the  production  of  English  in  the  grades. 
This  could  be  provided  in  the  first  and  second  grades  by  tak- 
ing some  of  the  time  devoted  to  penmanship  and  doing  the 
work  partly  in  connection  with  the  reading  classes.  In  the 
third  and  fourth  grades  it  should  take  some  of  the  time  25 
devoted  to  penmanship  and  should  be  studied  also  in  connec- 
tion with  geography  and  reading,  and  in  the  fifth  and  sixth 
grades  it  should  take  all  of  the  time  given  to  grammar. 

I  regret  to  be  compelled  to  express  dissent  upon  so  many 
points,  but  as  most  of  them  appear  to  me  vital  and  as  the  30 
differences  appear  to  be  not  merely  superficial  but  funda- 
mental, affecting  and  affected  by  one's  entire  educational  creed, 
I  cannot  do  otherwise.  To  most  of  the  report  I  most  gladly 
give  my  assent  and  approval. 

Charles  B.  Gilbert, 
Superintendent  of  Schools,  St.  Paul,  Minn. 


no  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

I  agree  most  heartily  with  the  main  features  of  the  fore- 
going report  of  the  sub-committee  on  correlation  of  studies 
It  is  so  admirable  in  its  analysis  of  subjects  and  in  its  state- 
ment of  comparative  education  values,  and  so  suggestive  in  its 
5  practical  applications  to  teaching,  that  I  regret  to  find  myself 
appearing  in  any  way  to  dissent  from  its  conclusions.  Indeed 
my  principal  objection  is  not  against  anything  contained  in  the 
report  (unless  it  be  against  a  possible  inference  which  might 
be  drawn  at  one  point),  but  it  refers  rather  to  what  seems  to 

lome  to  be  an  omission, 
y^     In  addition  to  all  the  forms  of  correlation  recommended  in 
the  report,  it  seems  to  me  possible  to  make  a  correlation  of 
subjects  in  a  programme  in  such  way  that  the  selection  of  sub- 
ject-matter maybe  to  some  extent  from  all  fields  of  knowledge. 

15  These  selections  should  be  such  as  are  related  to  one  another 
so  as  to  be  mutually  helpful  in  acquisition.  They  should  be 
the  main  features  of  knowledge  in  the  different  departments. 

These  different  departments  from  which  the  chosen  sub- 
jects should  be  taken  must  be  fundamental  ones  and  must  be 

20  sufficiently  numerous  to  represent  universal  culture.  The 
report  itself  indicates  conclusively  what  these  are. 

Reference  is  made  in  the  report  to  various  attempts  that 
have  been  made  to  correlate  subjects  of  study. 

A  very  just  criticism  is  made  upon  that  attempt  at  correla- 

25  tion  by  the  use  of  the  story  of  Robinson  Crusoe  as  a  center  of 
correlation.  It  is  distinctly  pointed  out  in  the  report  that  the 
experiences  of  Robinson  Crusoe  are  lacking  in  many  of  the 
elements  of  universal  culture,  and  in  many  elements  of  educa- 
tion needed  to  adjust  the  individual  properly  to  the  civiliza- 

30  tion  of  our  time  and  country.  It  is  equally  evident  that  the 
attempt  to  make  this  story  the  center  of  correlation  leads 
directly  to  trivial  exercises  in  other  subjects  in  order  to  make 
them  "  correlate  "  with  Robinson  Crusoe.  It  is  also  shown  in 
the  report  that  it  naturally  leads  to  fragmentary  knowledge 

35  of  many  subjects  very  much  inferior  to  that  clear,  logically 
connected  knowledge  of  a  subject  which  may  be  had  by  pur- 
suing it  without  reference  to  correlating  it  with  all  others. 


ox   CORRELATION   OF   STUDIES.  Ill 

It  is  at  this  point  that  in  my  judgment  a  wrong  inference 
is  permitted  by  the  report.  ^ 

It  does  not,  as  it  seems  to  me,  follow  that,  because  correla-    ^ 
tion  based  on  Robinson  Crusoe  is  a  failure,  all  correlations 
having   the    same    general    purpose    will    necessarily    prove   5 
failures.     For  my  own  part  I  do  not  believe  that  correlation 
needs  any  **  center,"  outside  the  child  and  its  natural  activi-  .  ^4^  ^  ^ 
ties.     If,  however,  it  seems  wiser  to  give  special  prominence       ^ 
to  any  given  field  of  acquisition,  it  should,  in  my  judgment, 
be  accorded  to  language  and  its   closely  related   subjects — 10 
reading,  spelling,  writing,  composing,  study  of  literature,  etc., 
etc.     Indeed  language  as  a  mode  of  expression  is  organically 
related  to   thinking,  in   all   fields   of   knowledge,  as   form    is 
related   to  content.     A   "  system  "    or  "  programme  "  of  cor- 
relation on  this  basis   would,  seek   for  fundamental   ideas  in  15 
all  the  leading  branches  and  make  them  themes  of  thought 
and  occasions  of  language  exercises.     The   selections  would 
omit  all  trivialities  in  all  subjects,  and  would  not  attempt  to 
correlate  for  the  mere  sake  of  correlation ;  but  would  seek  to    • 
correlate  wherever  by  such  correlation  kindred  themes  may  be  20 
made  to  illuminate  one  another.     To  illustrate,  concrete  prob- 
lems  in    arithmetic   would    be    sought    that    would    clearly 
develop   and  illustrate  mathematical  ideas  and  their  applica- 
tion ;  but  in  a  secondary  way  these  problems  would  be  sought 
for   in   the    various    departments    of    concrete   knowledge — 25 
geography,  history,    physics,  chemistry,   astronomy,    meteor- 
ology, political,  industrial,  or  domestic  economy.     But  none  of 
these  themes  would  be  so  relied  upon  for  problems  as  to  com- 
pel one  to  choose  unreasonable  or  trivial  relations  on  which 
to   base  them.     The  problems   themselves  should    represent  30 
true   and  important  facts  and  relations  of  the  other  subjects 
as  surely  and  rigidly  as  they  should  involve  correct  mathe- 
matical principles ;   and  all  such  exercises  should  be  rightly 
related  to  the  child's  education  in  language. 

In  like  manner,  when  a  child  is  engaged  in  nature  study  of  35 
any  kind,  some  valuable   problems  in   mathematics  may  be 
found  rightly  related  both  to  the  subject  directly  in  hand  and 


112  REPORT  OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

the  child's  natural  progress  in  arithmetic.  Also  many  of  the 
lessons  in  nature  study  are  directly  related  to  some  of  the 
finest  literature  ever  produced,  in  which  analogies  of  nature 
are  made  the  means  of  expression  for  the  finest  and  most 
5  delicate  of  the  human  experiences.  When  the  child  has 
mastered  the  physical  facts  on  which  the  literary  inspiration  is 
based  is  the  true  time  to  give  him  the  advantage  of  the  study 
of  such  literature.  These  ideas  are  not  only  rightly  related 
to  one  another,  but  to  the  mind  itself.     It  is,  so  to  speak,  the 

lo  nascent  moment  when  the  mind  can  easily  and  fully  master 
what  might  else  remain  an  impenetrable  mystery ;  and  all  be- 
cause subjects  and  occasion  have  come  into  happy  conjunction. 
This  is  not  the  place  in  which  to  attempt  any  elaboration 
of  such  a  system  of  correlation.     Bat  I  feel  that  its  absence 

15  from  the  report  may  make  many,  persons  feel  that  the  latter. 

is  so  far  incomplete. 

L.  H.  Jones, 

Superintendent  of  Schools,  Cleveland,  O. 


With  the  main  lines  of  thought  in  this  report  I  find  myself 
in  agreement.     With  many  of  its  details,  however,  I  am  not  in 
accord.     I  regret  to  have  to  express  my  dissent  from  its  con- 
20  elusions  in  the  following  particulars : 

1.  The  report  makes  too  little  of  the  uses  of  grammar  as 
supplying  canons  of  criticism  which  enable  the  pupil  to  cor- 
rect his  own  English,  and  as  furnishing  a  key  (grammatical 
analysis)   that   gives   him   the   power  to  see  the  meaning  of 

25  obscure  or  involved  sentences. 

2.  For  the  study  of  literature,  complete  works  are  to  be  pre- 
ferred to  the  selections  found  in  school  readers. 

3.  That  species  of  language  exercise  known  as  paraphras- 
ing I  regard  as  harmful. 

30  4.  The  study  of  number  should  not  be  omitted  from  the  first 
year  in  school.  Practice  in  the  primary  operations  of  arith- 
metic should  not  be  omitted  from  the  seventh  and  eighth 
years.  The  quadratic  equation  should  be  reserved  for  the 
High  School. 


ON   CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  II3 

5.  The  foreign  language  introduced  into  the  elementary 
school  course  should  be  a  modern  language — French  or 
German.  Latin  should  be  reserved  for  those  who  have  time 
and  opportunity  to  master  its  literature. 

6.  In  the  general  programme  of  studies,  the  school  day  is  5 
cut  up  into  too  many  short  periods.     The  tendency  of  such  a 
programme  as  that  in  the  text  would  be  to  destroy  repose  of 
mind  and  render  reflection  almost  an  impossibility. 

7.  I  desire  to   express   my   agreement   with   the   opinions 
stated  in  Sections  2,  3,  6,  and   9   of  Mr.  Gilbert's  dissenting  10 
opinion  ;  and,  in  the  main,  with  what  Mr.  Jones  says  on  the 
correlation  of  studies. 

William  H.  Maxwell, 
Superintendent  of  Schools,  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 


Ill 

REPORT   OF   THE 

SUB-COMMITTEE   ON   THE   ORGANIZATION   OF 
CITY   SCHOOL   SYSTEMS 

It  is  understood  that  the  Committee  is  to  treat  of  city 
school  systems  which  are  so  large  that  persons  chosen  by  the 
people  to  manage  them,  and  serving  without  pay,  cannot  be 
expected  to  transact  all  the  business  of  the  system  in  person, 
5  nor  to  have  personal  knowledge  of  all  business  transactions ;  and 
which  are  also  so  large  that  one  person  employed  to  supervise 
the  instruction  cannot  be  assumed  to  personally  manage  or 
direct  all  of  the  details  thereof;  but  must,  in  each  case,  act 
under  plans  of  organization  and  administration  established  by 

10  law,  and  through  assistants  or  representatives. 

The  end  for  which  a  school  system  exists  is  the  instruction 
of  the  children,  the  word  instruction  being  used  with  the 
meaning  it  attains  in  the  mind  of  a  well-educated  person,  if  not 
in  the  mind  of  an  educational  expert. 

15  To  secure  this  end,  no  plan  of  organization  alone  will 
suffice.  Nothing  can  take  the  place  of  a  sincere  desire  for 
good  schools,  of  a  fair  knowledge  of  what  good  schools  are 
and  of  what  will  make  them,  of  a  public  spirit  and  a  moral  sense 
on  the  part  of  the  people,  which  are  spontaneous  or  which  can 

20  be  appealed  to  with  confidence.  Fortunately  the  interest 
which  the  people  have  in  their  own  children  is  so  large,  and 
the  anxiety  of  the  community  for  public  order  and  security  is 
so  great,  that  public  sentiment  may  ordinaril}^  be  relied  upon, 
or   may  be  aroused  to   action,  to    choose   proper  representa- 

25tives  and  take  proper  measures  for  the  administration  of  the 

schools.     If,  in  any  case,  this  is  not  so,  there  is  little  hope  of 

efficient  schools.     Wherever  it  is  so,  it  alone  will  not  suffice; 

but  proper  organization  may  become  the  instrument  of  public 

114 


ON   ORGANIZATION   OF  CITY  SCHOOLS.  II 5 

sentiment  and   develop   schools   that   will    be   equal   to   the 
needs  of  all  and  become  the  safeguards  of  citizenship. 

Efficient  schools  can  be  secured  only  by  providing  suitable 
buildings  and  appliances  and  by  keeping  them  in  proper 
order,  on  the  one  hand,  and,  on  the  other  hand,  by  employ-  5 
ing,  organizing,  aiding,  and  directing  teachers  so  that  the 
instruction  shall  have  life  and  power  to  accomplish  the  great 
end  for  which  schools  are  maintained. 

The  circumstances  of  the  case  naturally  and  quickly  separate 
the  duties  of  administration  into  two  great  departments:  one  10 
which  manages  the  business  affairs,  and  the  other  which  super- 
vises the  instruction.  The  business  affairs  of  the  school 
system  may  be  transacted  by  any  citizens  of  common  honesty, 
correct  purposes,  and  of  good  business  experience  and 
sagacity.  The  instruction  will  be  ineffective  and  abnormally  15 
expensive  unless  put  upon  a  scientific  educational  basis  and 
supervised  by  competent  educational  experts. 

There  will  be  a  waste  of  money  and  effort,  and  a  lack  of 
results,  unless  the  authorities  of  these  two  departments  are 
sympathetic  with  each  other;  that  is,  unless,  on  the  one  hand, 20 
the  business  management  is  sound,  is  appreciative  of  good 
teaching,  looks  upon  it  as  a  scientific  and  professional  employ- 
ment, and  is  alert  to  sustain  it;  and  unless,  on  the  other  hand, 
the  instructors  are  competent  and  self-respecting,  know  what 
good  business  management  is,  are  glad  to  uphold  it,  and  are  25 
able  to  respect  those  who  are  charged  with  responsibility  for  it. 

To  secure  efficiency  in  these  departments,  there  must  be 
adequate  authority  and  quick  .public  accountability.  The 
problem  is  not  merely  to  secure  some  good  schoolhouses,  but 
good  schoolhouses  wherever  needed,  and  to  avoid  the  use  of  30 
all  houses  which  are  not  suitable;  it  is  not  to  get  some  good 
teaching,  but  to  prevent  all  bad  teaching  and  to  advance  all 
the  teaching  to  the  highest  possible  point  of  special  training, 
of  professional  spirit,  and  of  life-giving  power.  All  of  the 
business  matters  must  be  intrusted  to  competent  business  35 
hands  and  managed  upon  sound  business  principles;  and  all  of 
the  instruction  must  be  put  upon  a  professional  basis.     To 


Il6  REPORT   OF   THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

insure  this,  there  must  be  deliberation  and  wisdom  in  deter- 
mining poh'cy,  and  then  the  power  to  do  what  is  determined 
upon  must  be  present  and  capable  of  exercise,  and  the  respon- 
sibility for  the  proper  exercise  of  the  power  must,  in  each 

5  case,  be  individual  and  immediate. 

It  is  imperative  that  we  discriminate  between  the  legislative 
and  the  executive  action  in  organizing  and  administering  the 
schools.  The  influences  which  enter  into  legislative  action 
looking  to  the  general  organization  and  work  of  the  schools 

lomust  necessarily  and  fundamentally  flow  directly  from  the 
people  and  be  widely  spread.  The  greater  the  number  of 
people,  in  proportion  to  the  entire  population,  who  can  be  led 
to  take  a  positive  interest  and  an  active  part  in  securing  good 
schools  the  better  will  the  schools  be,  provided  the  people  can 

1 5  secure  the  complete  execution  of  their  purposes    and  plans. 
But  experience  has   clearly  shown   that    many  causes   inter- 
vene to  prevent  the  complete  execution  of  such  plans;  that  all  i 
the  natural  enemies  of  sound  administration  scent  plenty  of 
plunder    and   are   especially   active   here;    that   good  school 

20 administration  requires  much  strength  of  character,  much 
business  experience,  much  technical  knowledge,  and  can  be 
measurably  satisfactory  only  when  the  responsibility  is  ade- 
quate and  the  penalties  for  maladministration  are  severe. 
Decentralization  in  making   the   plan  and  determining  what 

25  shall  be  done,  and  centralization  in  executing  the  plan  and  in 
doing  what  is  to  be  done,  are  perhaps  equally  important. 

It  should  be  remembered  that  the  character  of  the  school 
work  of  a  city  is  not  merely  a  matter  of  local  interest,  and  that 
the  maintenance  of  the  schools  does  not  rest  merely  or  mainly 

30  upon  local  authority.     The  people  of  the  municipality,  acting, 

and  ordinarily  glad  to  act,  but  in  any  event  being  required  to 

•  act,  under  and  pursuant  to  the  law  which  has  been  ordained 

by  the  sovereign  authority  of  the  State,  establish  and  maintain ' 

schools.     They  must  have  the  taxing  power  which  the  State 

35  alone  possseses  in  order  to  enable  them  to  proceed  at  all. 
They  must  regard  the  directions  which  the  State  sees  fit  to 
give  as  to  the  essential  character  of  the  schools,  when  it  exer- 


ON   ORGANIZATION   OF  CITY   SCHOOLS.  II 7 

cises  in  their  behalf,  or  when  it  delegates  to  them,  the  power 
of  taxation. 

The  plan  should  be  flexible  for  good  while  inflexible  for 
evil.  After  meeting  essential  requirements,  the  people  of  the 
municipality  may  and  should  be  empowered  to  proceed  as  much  5 
farther  as  they  will  in  elaborating  a  system  of  schools.  The 
higher  the  plane  of  average  intelligence,  and  the  more  generally 
and  the  more  directly  the  people  act  in  deciding  what  shall 
be  done,  and  the  greater  the  facility  and  completeness  with 
which  the  intelligence  of  the  city  is  able  to  secure  the  proper  10 
execution  of  its  plans  by  ofificers  appointed  for  that  purpose, 
the  more  elaborate  and  the  more  efficient  will  be  the  schools. 

It  is  idle  to  suggest  that  centering  executive  functions  is  un- 
wisely taking  power  away  from  the  people.     The  people  cannot 
execute  plans  themselves.     The  authority  to  do  so  must  neces- 15 
sarily  be  delegated."    The  question  simply  is:  Shall  it  be  given 
to  a  number  of  persons,  and,  if  so,  to  how  many?     Or,  to  only 
one?     This  question  is  to  be  decided  by  experience,  and  it  is 
of  course  true  that  experience  has  not  been  uniform.     But  it 
is  doubtless  true  that  the  general  experience  of  the  communi-20 
ties  of  the  country  has  shown  that  where  purely  executive 
functions  are  conferred  upon  a  number  of  persons,  jointly,  they 
yield  to   antagonistic  influences  and  shift    the  responsibility 
from   one  to  another;    and  that   centering  the  responsibility 
for  the   proper   discharge  of   executive  duties  upon  a  single  25 
person,  who  gets  the  credit  of  good  work  and  must  bear  the 
disgrace  or  penalty  of  bad  work,  and  who  can  quickly  be  held 
accountable  for  misdeeds   and   inefficiency,   has  secured  the 
fullest  execution  of  public  plans  and  the  largest  results.     To 
call  this  "centralization,"  with  the  meaning  which  commonly  30 
attaches  to  the  word,  is  inaccurate.     Instead  of  removing  the 
power  from  the  people,  it  is  keeping  the  power  closer  to  the 
people  and  making  it  possible  for  the  citizen,  in  his  individual 
capacity,  and  for  organized  bodies  of  citizens,  to  secure  the 
execution  of  plans  according  to  the  purpose  and  intent  with  35 
which  those  plans  were  made.     Indeed  it  is  safe  to  say  that 
experience  has  shown  that  it  is  the  only  way  in  which  to  pre- 


Il8  REPORT  OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

vent  the  frequent  thwarting  of  the  popular  will  and  the 
defiance  of  individuals  whose  interests  are  ignored  or  whose 
rights  are  invaded. 

So  much,  it  seems  to  us,  is  strongly  supported  both  by 

5  reason  and  by  experience,  and  is  clearly  manifest. 

But  all  the  people  of  a  city  whose  population  is  numbered  by 
hundreds  of  thousands  or  millions  cannot  meet  in  a  legislative 
assemblage  to  formulate  plans  for  school  government,  any  more 
than  they  can  all  meet  to  make  plans  for  municipal  government. 

loThey  cannot  even  gather  in  mass  meetings,  and,  if  they  couldj 

mass  meetings  cannot  deliberate.     Even  their  legislative  actioni 

must  flow  not  from  a  primary  but  from  a  representative  assembly^ 

What  shall  such  a  representative  legislative  body  be  called?! 

How  shall  it  be  chosen?     Of  how  many  members  shall  it  be 

1 5 composed?    And  what  shall  be  its  powers?    These  and  other 
similar  questions  are  all-important  and  must  be  determined  by 
the  law-making  power  of  the  State.     The  sentiments  of  th^ 
city,  as  expressed  through  the  local  organizations  and  parties 
larly   through   the  newspapers,    must  of   course   have  much 

20  weight  with  the  legislature  if  there  is  anything  like  unanimity 
or  any  very  strong  preponderance  of  opinion  in  the  city;  foi 
the  plan  for  which  a  community  expresses  a  preference  wil 
surely  be  likely  to  operate  most  effectually  in  that  community, 
But  the  local  sentiment  is  not  conclusive.     When  divided,  it 

25  is  no  guide  at  all.     The  legislature  is  to  take  all  the  circum 
stances  into  consideration,  take  the  world's  experience  for  iti 
guide,  and,  acting  under  its  responsibilities,  it  must  exercis 
its  high  powers  in  ways  that  will  build  up  a  system  of  schools' 
in  the   city  likely  to   articulate  with  the  State  educational 

30  system  and  become  the  effective  instrument  of  developing  the 
intelligence  and  training  the  character  of  the  children  of  the 
city  up  to  the  ideals  of  the  State. 

The  name  of  the  legislative  branch  of  the  school  govern- 
ment is  not  material,  and  the  one  to  which  the  people  are 

35  accustomed  may  well  continue  to  be  employed.  There  is  no 
name  more  appropriate  than  the  "Board  of  Education." 

The   manner  of  selecting  the  members  of   this  legislative 


ON   ORGANIZATION    OF   CITY   SCHOOLS.  1 19 

body  may  turn  somewhat  upon  the  circumstances  of  the  city. 
We  are  strongly  of  the  opinion  that  in  view  of  the  well-known 
difficulty  about  securing  the  attendance  of  the  most  interested 
and  intelligent  electors  at  school  elections,  as  well  as  because 
of  the  apparent  impossibility  of  freeing  school  elections  from  5 
political  or  municipal  issues,  the  better  manner  of  selection  is 
by  appointment. 

If  the  members  of  the  board  are  appointed,  the  mayor  of  the 
city  is  likely  to  be  the  official  to  whom  the  power  of  appoint- 
ment may  most  safely  be  intrusted.     The  mayor  is  notsug-io 
gested  because  his  office  should  sustain  any  relations  to  the 
school  system,  but  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  it  does  not  and 
should  not.     The  school  system  should  be  absolutely  emanci- 
pated from  partisan  politics  and  completely  dissociated  from 
municipal  business.     But  we  think  the  appointments  should  15 
be  made  by  some  one  person  rather  than  by  a  board.     The 
mayor  is  representative  of  the  whole  city  and  all  its  interests. 
While  not  chosen  with  any  reference  to  the  interests  of  the 
schools,  he  may  be  assumed  to  have  information  as  to  the  fit- 
ness of  citizens  for  particular  responsibilities  and  to  be  desirous  20 
of  promoting  the  educational  interests  of  the  people.     If  he  is 
given  the  power  of  appointment,  he  should   be  particularly 
enjoined,  by  law,  to  consider  only  the  fitness  of  individuals 
and  to  pay  no  regard  to  party  affiliations,  unless  it  be  particu- 
larly to  see  to  it  that  no  one  political  party  has  an  overwhelm- 25 
ing  preponderance  in  the  board.     The  mayor  very  commonly 
feels   constrained,  under   the   pressure   of   party  expediency, 
to  make  so  many  questionable  appointments  that  he  is  only 
too  glad,  and  particularly  so  when   enjoined  by  the  law,  to 
make  very  acceptable   appointments   of   members   of  school  30 
boards,  in  order  that  he  may  gratify  the  better  sentiment  of 
the  city.     We   are   confident  that  the  problem  of  getting  a 
representative  board  of  education  is  not  so  difficult  as  many 
think,  if  the  board  is  not  permitted  to  make  patronage  of  work 
and  of  salaried  positions  at  the  disposal  of  the  public  school  35 
system.     Under  such  circumstances,  and  more  and  more  so  as 
we  have  approached  such  circumstances,  appointment  in  the 


120  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

way  we  suggest  has  produced  the  best  school  boards  in  the 
larger  cities  of  the  country. 

Attempts  to  eliminate  partisanship  from  school  administra- 
tion, by  arraying  an  equal  number  of  partisans  against  each 
5  other  in  school  boards  do  not  at  least  aim  at  an  ideal.  At 
times  such  boards  have  worked  well  and  at  others  have  led  to 
mischievous  consequences.  The  true  course  is  to  insist  that 
all  who  have  any  share  in  the  management  of  the  schools  shall 
divest  themselves  of  partisanship,  whether  political  or  religious, 

loin  such  management,  and  give  themselves  wholly  to  the  high 
interests  intrusted  to  them.  If  it  be  said  that  this  cannot  be 
realized,  it  may  be  answered,  without  admitting  it,  that  even 
if  that  were  so  it  would  be  no  reason  why  the  friends  of  the 
schools  should  not  assert  the  sound  principle  and  secure  its 

15  enforcement  as  far  as  possible.  We  must  certainly  give  no; 
countenance  to  makeshifts  which  experience  has  shown  to  bef 
misleading  and  expensive.  The  right  must  prevail  in  the  end, 
and  the  earlier  and  more  strongly  it  is  contended  for  th( 
sooner  it  will  prevail. 

20  The  members  of  school  boards  should  be  representative  ol 
the  whole  population  and  of  all  their  common  educational 
interests,  and  should  not  be  chosen  to  represent  any  ward  01 
subdivision  of  the  territory  or  any  party  or  element  in  th< 
political,  religious,  or  social  life  thereof.     Where  this  principh 

25  is  not  enforced,  the  members  will  feel  bound  to  gain  whal 
advantage  they  can  for  the  sub-district  or  special  interests  the] 
represent;  bitter  contests  will  ensue,  and  the  common  interests 
will  suffer. 

The  number  of  the  members  of  a  board  of  education  shouh 

30 be  small.  In  cities  of  less  than  500,000  inhabitants  it  shouh 
not  be  more  than  nine,  and  preferably  not  more  than  five.  In 
the  very  largest  cities  it  may  well  be  extended  to  fifteen. 

The  term   for  which  members  are  appointed  should  be  j 
long  one,  say  five  years. 

35  We  think  it  an  excellent  plan  to  provide  for  two  branches 
and  sets  of  powers  in  the  board  of  education ;  the  one  to  have 
the  veto  power,  or  at  least  to  act  as  a  check  upon  the  acts  of 


ON  ORGANIZATION  OF  CITY   SCHOOLS.  121 

the  other.  This  may  be  accomplished  by  creating  the  office 
of  School  Director  and  charging  the  incumbent  with  execu- 
tive duties  on  the  business  side  of  the  administration,  and  by 
giving  him  the  veto  over  the  acts  of  the  other  branch  of  the 
board,  which  may  be  called  the  School  Council.  Beyond  5 
the  care  and  conservatism  which  are  insured  by  two  sets  of 
powers  acting  against  each  other,  this  plan  has  the  advantage 
of  giving  the  chief  executive  officer  of  the  system  just  as  high 
and  good  a  title  as  that  of  members  of  the  board ;  it  is  likely 
to  secure  a  more  representative  man,  and  gives  him  larger  pre-  lo 
rogatives  in  the  discharge  of  his  executive  duties  and  better 
standing  among  the  people,  particularly  among  the  employees 
and  teachers  associated  with  the  public  school  system. 

If   this   plan    is   adopted,   the   school   director    should   be 
required  to  give  his  entire  time  to  the  duties  of  his  position  15 
and   be  properly  compensated  therefor.     He  should  be  the 
custodian  of  all  property  and   should  appoint  all  assistants, 
janitors,  and  workmen  authorized  by  the  board  for  the  care  of 
this  property.     He  should  give  bond  with  sufficient  sureties 
and  penalties  for  the  faithful  and  proper  discharge  of  all  his  20 
duties.     He  should  be  authorized  by  law  to  expend  funds, 
within  a  fixed  limit,  for  repairs,  appliances,  and  help,  without 
the  action  of  the  board.     All  contracts  should  be  made  by 
him  and  should  run  in  his  name,  and  he  should  be  charged 
with  the  responsibility  of  seeing  that  they  are  faithfully  and  25 
completely  executed.     All  contracts  involving  more  than  a 
limited  and  fixed  sum  of  money  should  be  let  upon  bids  to  be 
advertised  for  and  opened  in  public.     He  should  have  a  seat 
in  the  board  of  education,  should  not  vote  but  should  have 
the  power  to  veto,  either  absolutely  or  conditionally,  any  of  30 
the  acts  of  the  board  through  a  written  communication.     This 
officer  and  the  school  council  should  togeth^  constitute  the 
board  of  education. 

The  board  of  education  should  be  vested  only  with  legisla- 
tive functions  and  should  be  required  to  act  wholly  through  35 
formal  and   recorded    resolutions.     It  should  determine   and 
direct  the  general  policy  of  the  school  system.     Within  reason- 


122  REPORT  OF  THE   COMMITTEE  OF  FIFTEEN 

able  limits,  as  to  amount,  it  should  be  given  power,  in  its  dis- 
cretion, to  levy  whatever  moneys  may  be  needed  for  school 
purposes.  It  shou4d  control  the  expenditure  of  all  moneys 
beyond  a  fixed  and  limited  amount,  which  may  safely  and 
5  advantageously  be  left  to  the  discretion  of  the  chief  executive 
business  officer.  It  should  authorize,  by  general  resolutions, 
the  appointment  of  necessary  officers  and  employees  in  the 
business  department,  and  of  the  superintendent,  assistants,  and 
teachers  in  the  department  of  instruction,  but  it  should  be 

10  allowed  to  make  no  appointments  other  than  its  own  clerk. 
With  this  necessary  exception,  single  officers  should  be 
charged  with  responsibility  for  all  appointments. 

This  plan,  not  in  all  particulars,  but  in  the  essential  ones,  has 
been  on  trial  in  the  city  of  Cleveland,  O.,  for  nearly  three  years, 

1 5  and  has  worked  with  very  general  acceptability.  If  this  plan 
is  adopted,  the  chief  executive  officer  of  the  system  is  already 
provided  for  and  his  duties  have  already  been  indicated. 
Otherwise  it  will  be  necessary  for  the  board  to  appoint  such 
an  officer.     In  that  event  the  law  should  declare  him  independ- 

2oent,  confer  upon  him  adequate  authority  for  the  performance 
of  executive  duties,  and  charge  him  with  responsibility.     But 
we  know  of  no  statutory  language  capable  of  making  an  officer, 
appointed  by  a  board,  and  dependent  upon  the  same  board  for 
supplies,  independent  in  fact   of  the  personal  wishes   of   the ; 

25  members  of  that  board.  And  right  here  is  where  the  troubles 
rush  in  to  discredit  and  damage  the  school  system. 

We  now  come  to  the  subject  of  paramount  importance  in>: 
making   a   plan    for   the  school   government  in  a  great  city, 
namely,  the  character  of  the  teaching  force  and  the  quality  of 

30  the  instruction.  A  city  school  system  may  be  able  to  with- 
stand some  abuses  on  the  business  side  of  its  administration 
and  continue  to* perform  its  function  with  measurable  success, 
but  wrongs  against  the  instruction  must,  in  a  little  time,  prove 
fatal.     The  strongest  language  is  none  too  strong  here.     The 

35  safety  of  the  Republic,  the  security  of  American  citizenship, 
are  at  stake.  Government  by  the  people  has  no  more  dan- 
gerous pitfall  in  its  road  than  this,  that  in  the  mighty  cities  of 


ON  ORGANIZATION  OF  CITY   SCHOOLS.  1 23 

the  land  the  comfortable  and  intelligent  masses,  who  are  dis- 
criminating more  and  more  closely  about  the  education  of 
their  children,  shall  become  dissatisfied  with  the  social  status 
of  the  teachers  and  the  quality  of  the  teaching  in  the  common 
schools.  In  that  event,  they  will  educate  their  children  at  5 
their  own  expense,  and  the  public  schools  will  become  only 
good  enough  for  those  who  can  afford  no  better.  The  only 
way  to  avert  this  is  by  maintaining  the  instruction  upon  a 
purely  scientific  and  professional  footing.  This  is  entirely 
practicable,  but  it  involves  much  care  and  expense  in  training  10 
teachers,  the  absolute  elimination  of  favoritism  from  appoint- 
ments, the  security  of  the  right  to  advancement,  after  appoint- 
ment, on  the  basis  of  merit,  and  a  general  leadership  which  is 
kindly,  helpful,  and  stimulating  to  individuals,  which  can 
secure  harmonious  co-operation  from  all  the  members,  and  15 
which  lends  energy  and  inspiration  to  the  whole  body. 

This  cannot  be  secured  if  there  is  any  lack  of  authority,  and 
experience  amply  proves  that  it  will  not  be  secured  if  there  is 
any  division  of  responsibility.  The  whole  matter  of  instruction 
must  be  placed  in  the  hands  of  a  superintendent  of  instruction,  20 
with  independent  powers  and  adequate  authority,  who  is 
charged  with  full  responsibility. 

The   danger   of  inconsiderate  or   improper  action   by  one 
vested  with  such  powers  is  of  course  possible,  but  it  is  remote. 
Regardless  of  the  legal  powers  with  which  he  may  be  indi-25 
vidually  vested,  he   is   in   fact  and  in  law  a  part  of  a  large 
system.     He  must  act  through  others  arid  in  the  presence  of 
multitudes.      There   is  great    publicity   about   all    he   does. 
When  a  single  officer  carries  such  responsibility  he  is  at  the 
focus  of  all  eyes.     There  are  the  strongest  incentives  to  right  30 
action.     Without  discovery,  at  least  by  many  persons,  he  can- 
not act  wrongfally.     If  he  is  required  to  act  under  and  pur- 
suant to  a  plan,  the  details  of  which  have  been  announced, 
and  of  which  we  shall  speak  in  a  moment,  a  wrongful  act  will 
be  known  to  the  world  and  he  must  bear  the  responsibility  of  35 
it,  and  the  danger  of  maladministration  is  almost  eliminated. 

Moreover,  we  must  consider  the  alternative.     It  is  not  in 


124  REPORT   OF  THE  COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN 

doubt.  All  who  have  had  any  contact  with  the  subject  are 
familiar  with  it.  It  is  administration  by  boards  or  committees, 
the  members  of  which  are  not  competent  to  manage  profes- 
sional matters  and  develop  an  expert  teaching-force.  Yet 
5  they  assume,  and  in  most  cases  honestly,  the  knowledge 
of  the  most  experienced.  They  override  and  degrade  a 
superintendent,  when  they  have  the  power  to  do  so,  until  he 
becomes  their  mere  factotum.  ,  For  the  sake  of  harmony  and 
the  continuance  of  his  position  he  concedes,  surrenders,  and 

lo  acquiesces  in  their  acts,  while  the  continually  increasing  teach- 
ing-force becomes  weaker  and  weaker  and  the  work  poorer  and 
poorer.  If  he  refuses  to  do  this,  they  precipitate  an  open 
rupture  and  turn  him  out  of  his  position.  Then  they  cloud  the 
issues  and  shift  the  responsibility  from  one  to  another.     There 

15  are  exceptions,  of  course,  but  they  do  not  change  the  rule. 
It  will  be  unprofitable  to  mince  words  about  this  all-impor- 
tant matter.     If  the  course  of  study  for  the  public  schools  of 
a  great  city  is  to  be  determined  by  laymen,  it  will  not  be 
suited  to  the  needs  of  a  community.     If  teachers  are  to  be 

20  appointed  by  boards  or  committees,  the  members  of  which  are 
particularly  sensitive  to  the  desires  of  people  who  have  votes 
or  influence,  looseness  of  action  is  inevitable  and  unworthy 
considerations  will  frequently  prevail.  If  the  action  of  a 
board  or  committee  be  conditioned  upon  the  recommendation 

25  of  a  superintendent,  the  plan  will  not  suffice.  No  one  person 
is  stronger  than  the  system  of  which  he  is  a  part.  Such  a  plan 
results  in  contests,  between  the  board  and  the  superintendent, 
and  such  a  contest  is  obviously  an  unequal  one.  There  is 
little    doubt    of   the   outcome.      In    recommending    for    the 

30 appointment  of  teachers,  the  personal  wishes  of  members  of 
the  board,  in  particular  cases,  will  have  to  be  acquiesced  in. 
If  a  teacher,  no  matter  how  unfit,  cannot  be  dropped  from  the 
list  without  the  approval  of  a  board  or  committee  after  they 
have  heard  from  her  friends  and  sympathizers,  she  will  remain 

35  indefinitely  in  the  service.  This  means  a  low  tone  in  the 
teaching  force  and  desolation  in  the  work  of  the  schools.  If 
the  superintendent  accepts  the  situation,  he  becomes  less  and 


ON   ORGANIZATION   OF   CITY   SCHOOLS.  12$ 

less  capable  of  developing  a  professional  teaching  service.     If 

he  refuses  to  accept  it,  he  is  very  likely  to  meet  humiliation-. 

dismissal  is  inevitable  unless  he  is  strong  enough  to  make  him- 

\  self  secure  by  doing  the  right  thing  and  going  directly  to  the 

\  people  and  winning  their  approval.  5 

The  superintendent  of  instruction  should  be  charged  with 
no  duty  save  the  supervision  of  the  instruction,  but  should 
be  charged  with  the  responsibility  of  making  that  professional 
and  scientific,  and  should  be  given  the  position  and  authority 
to  accomplish  that  end.  10 

If  the  board  of  education  is  constituted  upon  the  old  plan, 
he  must  be  chosen  by  the  board.  If  it  is  constituted  upon  the 
Cleveland  plan,  he  may  be  appointed  by  the  school  director 
with  the  approval  of  two-thirds  or  three-fourths  of  the  council. 
The  latter  plan  seems  preferable,  for  it  centralizes  the  main  15 
responsibility  of  this  important  appointment  in  a  single  indi- 
vidual. In  either  case,  the  law  and  the  sentiment  of  the  city 
should  direct  that  the  appointee  shall  be  a  person  liberally 
educated,  professionally  trained,  one  who  knows  what  good 
teaching  is,  but  is  also  experienced  in  administration,  in  touch  2c 
with  public  affairs  and  in  sympathy  with  popular  feeling. 

The  term  of  the  superintendent  of  instruction  should  be 
from  five  to  ten  years,  and  until  a  successor  is  appointed.  In 
our  judgment  it  should  be  determinate  so  that  there  may  be  a 
time  of  public  examination,  but  it  should  be  sufficiently  long  25 
to  enable  one  to  lay  foundations  and  show  results  without 
being  carried  under  by  the  prejudices  which  always  follow  the 
first  operation  of  efficient  or  drastic  plans.  The  salary  should 
be  fixed  by  law  and  not  subject  to  change  in  the  middle  of  a 
term  or  except  by  law.  30 

For  reasons  already  suggested,  the  superintendent,  once 
appointed,  should  have  power  to  appoint  from  an  eligible  list 
all  assistants  and  teachers  authorized  by  the  board,  and 
unlimited  authority  to  assign  them  to  their  respective  posi- 
tions and  reassign  them  or  remove  them  from  the  force  at  his  35 
discretion. 

To   secure   a   position   upon   the   eligible   list  from   which 


126  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN 

appointments  may  be  made,  a  candidate,  if  without  experience, 
should  be  required  to  complete  the  full  four  years'  course  of 
the  city  high  schools,  or  its  equivalent,  and  in  addition  thereto 
pass  the  examination  of  the  board  of  examiners,  and  complete 
sat  least  a  year's  course  of  professional  training  in  a  city  normal 
training  school  under  the  direction  of  the  superintendent.  If 
the  candidate  has  had  say  three- years  of  successful  experience 
as  a  teacher,  he  should  be  eligible  to  appointment  by  passing 
an  examination  held   by  a  general  examining   board.     This 

10  board  may  be  appointed  by  the  board  of  education,  but  should 
examine  none  but  graduates  of  the  high  school  and  training 
school  unless  specially  requested  so  to  do  by  the  superintend- 
ent of  instruction.  The  number  admitted  to  the  training 
schools  should   be  limited,  and  the  examinations  should   be 

15  gauged  to  the  prospective  needs  of  the  elementary  schools,  for 
new  teachers.  The  supply  of  new  teachers  may  well  be 
largely,  but  should  not  be  wholly,  drawn  from  this  local 
source.  The  force  will  gain  fresh  vitality  by  some  appoint- 
ments of  good  and  experienced  teachers  from  outside. 

20  The  work  of  putting  a  large  teaching  force  upon  a  profes- 
sional basis,  of  making  the  teaching  scientific  and  capable  of 
arousing  minds  to  action,  is  so  difficult  that  a  layman  can 
scarcely  appreciate  it.  It  has  hardly  been  commenced,  it  has 
been  made  possible  only  when  the  avenues  of  approach  to  the 

25  service  have  been  closed  against  the  unqualified  and  unworthy. 
After  that,  the  supervision  must  be  close  and  general  as  well 
as  sympathetic  and  decisive.  The  superintendent  must  have 
expert  assistants  enough  to  learn  the  characteristics  and 
measure  the  work  of  every  member  of  the  force.     They  must 

30  help  and  encourage,  advise  and  direct,  according  to  the  cir- 
cumstances of  each  case.  The  work  must  be  reduced  to  a 
system  and  the  workers  brought  into  harmonious  relations. 
Each  room  must  show  neatness  and  life,  and  the  whole  force 
must  show  ardor  and  enthusiasm.     By  directing  the  reading, 

35  by  encouraging  an  interchange  of  visits,  by  organizing  clubs  for 
self-improvement,  by  frequent  class,  grade,  and  general  meet- 
ings, the  professional  spirit  must  be  aroused  and  the  work 


ON   ORGANIZATION   OF   CITY    SCHOOLS.  12/ 

energized.  Those  who  show  teaching  power,  versatility, 
amiability,  reliability,  steadiness,  and  growth,  must  be  re- 
warded with  the  highest  positions;  those  who  lack  fiber,  who 
have  no  energy,  who  are  incapable  of  enthusiasm,  who  will  not 
work  agreeably  with  their  associates,  must  go  upon  the  retired  5 
h'st.  Directness  and  openness  must  be  encouraged.  Attempts 
to  invoke  social,  political,  rehgious,  or  other  outside  influences 
to  secure  preferment  must  operate  to  close  the  door  to 
advancement.  In  general  and  in  particular,  bad  teaching  must 
be  prevented.  In  every  room,  a  firm  and  kindly  management  10 
must  prevail  and  good  teaching  must  be  apparent.  All  must 
work  along  common  lines  which  will  insure  general  and  essen- 
tial ends.  Until  a  teacher  can  do  this  and  can  be  relied  upon 
to  do  it,  she  must  be  helped  and  directed;  when  it  is  manifest 
she  cannot  or  will  not  do  it,  she  must  be  dismissed:  when  she  15 
shows  she  can  do  it  and  wants  to  do  it,  she  must  be  left  to 
exercise  her  own  judgment  and  originality  and  do  k  in  her 
own  way.  In  the  schoolroom,  the  teacher  must  be  secure 
against  interference.  In  all  the  affairs  of  the  school,  her  judg- 
ment must  be  trusted  to  the  utmost  limit  of  safety.  Then  20 
judgment  will  strengthen  and  self-respect  and  public  respect 
will  grow.  The  qualities  which  develop  in  the  teacher  will 
develop  in  the  school.  To  develop  these  qualities  with  any 
degree  of  uniformity,  in  a  large  teaching  force,  requires  steady 
and  uniform  treatment  through  a  long  course  of  years  under  25 
superintendence  which  is  professional,  strong,  just,  and  cour- 
ageous ;  which  has  ample  assistance  and  authority ;  which  is 
worthy  of  public  confidence  and  knows  how  to  marshal  facts, 
present  arguments,  and  appeal  to  the  intelligence  and  integrity 
of  the  community  with  success.  30 

It  is  the  business  of  the  plan  of  organization  to  secure  such 
superintendence.  It  cannot  be  secured  through  an  ordinary 
board  of  education  operating  on  the  old  plan.  It  is  well 
known  what  the  influences  are  that  are  everywhere  prevalent 
and  must  inevitably  prevent  it.  It  may  be  secured  in  the  35 
law,  and  it  must  be  secured  there  or  it  will  not  be  secured 
at  all. 


128  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE  OF  FIFTEEN 

In  concluding  this  portion  of  the  report,  the  Committee 
indicates  briefly  the  principles  which  must  necessarily  be 
observed  in  framing  a  plan  of  organization  and  government  in 
a  large  city  school  system. 
5  First,  The  affairs  of  th'e  school  should  not  be  mixed  up 
with  partisan  contests  or  municipal  business.  . 

Second,  There  should  be  a  sharp  distinction  between  legis-  j 
lative  fujictions  and  executive  duties. 

Third,  Legislative   functions   should    be    clearly    fixed    by  i 

lo  statute  and  be  exercised  by  a  comparatively  small  board, 
each  member  of  which  is  representative  of  the  whole  city,  j 
This  board,  within  statutory  limitations,  should  determine  the  \ 
policy  of  the  system,  levy  taxes,  and  control  the  expenditures. 
It  should  make  no  appointments.     Every  act  should  be  by  a 

15  recorded  resolution.     It  seems  preferable  that  this  board  be) 
created   by  appointment  rather  than  election,  and  that  it  be 
constituted  of  two  branches  acting  against  each  other. 

Fourth.  Administration  should  be  separated  into  two  great 
independent  departments,  one  of  which  manages  the  business 

20  interests  and  the  other  of  which  supervises  the  instruction. 
Each  of  these  should  be  wholly  directed  by  a  single  official 
who  is  vested  with  ample  authority  and  charged  with  full 
responsibility  for  sound  administration. 

Fifth,  The   chief   executive  officer   on    the    business  side 

25  should  be  charged  with  the  care  of  all  property  and  with  the 
duty  of  keeping  it  in  suitable  condition:  he  should  provide  all 
necessary  furnishings  and  appliances :  he  should  make  all  agree- 
ments and  see  that  they  are  properly  performed :  he  should 
appoint  all  assistants,  janitors,  and  workmen.     In  a  word,  he 

30  should  do  all  that  the  law  contemplates  and  all  that  the  board 
authorizes,  concerning  the  business  affairs  of  the  school  system, 
and  when  anything  goes  wrong  he  should  answer  for  it.  He 
may  be  appointed  by  the  board,  but  we  think  it  preferable 
that  he  be  chosen  in  the  same  way  the  members  of  the  board 

35  are  chosen,  and  be  given  a  veto  upon  the  acts  of  the  board. 
Sixth.  The   chief   executive  officer  of   the    department   of 
instruction  should  be  given  a  long  term  and  may  be  appointed  I 


ON   ORGANIZATION   OF  CITY   SCHOOLS.  1 29 

by  the  board.  If  the  board  is  constituted  of  two  branches,  he 
should  be  nominated  by  the  business  executive  and  confirmed 
by  the  legislative  branch.  Once  appointed,  he  should  be 
independent.  He  should  appoint  all  authorized  assistants  and 
teachers  from  an  eligible  list  to  be  constituted  as  provided  by  5 
law.  He  should  assign  to  duties  and  discontinue  services  for 
cause,  at  his  discretion.  He  should  determine  all  matters 
relating  to  instruction.  He  should  be  charged  with  the 
responsibility  of  developing  a  professional  and  enthusiastic 
teaching  force  and  of  making  all  the  teaching  scientific  and  10 
forceful.  He  must  perfect  the  organization  of  his  department 
and  make  and  carry  out  plans  to  accomplish  this.  If  he  can- 
not do  this  in  a  reasonable  time  he  should  be  superseded  by 
one  who  can. 

The  government  of  a  vast  city  school  system  comes  to  have  15 
an  autonomy  which  is  largely  its  own  and  almost  independent 
of  direction  or  restraint.     The  volume  of  business  which  this 
government  transacts  is  represented  only  by  millions  of  dol- 
lars :  it  calls  not  only  for  the  highest  sagacity  and  the  ripest 
experience,  but  also  for  much  special  information  relating  to  2c 
school   property   and  school   affairs.      Even   more  important 
than  this  is  the  fact  that  this  government  controls  and  deter- 
mines the  educational  policy  of  the  city  and  carries  on  the 
instruction  of  tens  or  hundreds  of  thousands  of  children.     This 
instruction  is  of  little  value,  and  perhaps  vicious,  unless  it  is  25 
professional  and  scientific.     This  government  is  representative. 
All   citizens  are  compelled  to  support  it,  and  all  have  large 
interests   which  it  is  bound   to  promote.     Every  parent  has 
rights  which  it  is  the  duty  of  this  school  government  to  pro- 
tect and  enforce.     VVhen  government  exacts  our  support  of  30 
public  education,  when  it  comes  into  our  homes  and  takes  our 
children  into  its  custody  and  instructs  them  according  to  its 
will,  we  acquire  a  right  which  is  as  exalted  as  any  right  of 
property,  or  of  person,  or  of  conscience,  can  be ;  and  that  is  the 
right  to  know  that  the  environment  is  healthful,  that  the  man- 35 
agement  is  kindly  and  ennobling,  and  that  the  instruction  is 
rational  and  scientific.     It  is  needless  to  say  to  what  extent 


130  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF   FIFTEEN 

these  interests  are  impeded  or  blocked,  or  how  commonly 
these  rights  of  citizenship  and  of  parentage  are  denied  or 
defied,  or  how  helpless  the  individual  is  who  seeks  their 
enforcement  under  the  system  of  school  government  which 
5  has  heretofore  obtained  in  some  of  the  great  cities  of  the 
country.  This  is  not  surprising.  It  is  only  the  logical  result 
of  the  rapid  growth  of  cities,  of  a  marvelous  advance  in  knowl- 
edge of  what  is  needed  in  the  schools,  of  the  antagonism  of 
selfish  interests  by  which  all  public  administration  and  particu- 

lolarly  school  administration  is  encompassed,  and  of  the  lack  of 
plan  and  system,  the  confusion  of  powers,  the  absence  of  indi- 
vidual responsibility,  in  the  government  of  a  system  of  schools. 
By  the  census  of  1890  there  are  seven  cities  in  the  United 
States,  each  with  a  population  greater  than  any  one  of  sixteen 

15  States.  The  aggregate  population  of  twelve  cities  exceeds  the 
aggregate  population  of  twenty  States.  Government  for  edu- 
cation certainly  requires  as  strong  and  responsible  an  organiza- 
tion as  government  for  any  other  purpose.  These  great  centers 
of  population,  with  their  vast  and  complex  educational  prob- 

2olems,  have  passed  the  stage  when  government  by  the  time- 
honored  commission   will   sufifice.      No   popular  government 
ever  determined  the  policy  and  administered  the  affairs  of  such  ] 
large  bodies  of  people  successfully,  ever  transacted  such  a  vast 
volume  of  business  satisfactorily,  ever  promoted  high  and  benefi- 

25  cent  ends,  ever  afforded  protection  to  the  rights  of  each  indi- 
vidual of  the  great  multitude,  unless  in  its  plan  of  organization 
there  was  an  organic  separation  of  executive,  legislative,  and 
judicial  functions  and  powers.  All  the  circumstances  of  the 
case,  and  the  uniform  experience  of  the  world,  forbid  our  expect- 

3oing  any  substantial  solution  of  the  problem  we  are  considering 
until  it  is  well  settled  in  the  sentiments  of  the  people  that  the 
school  systems  of  the  greatest  cities  are  only  a  part  of  the  school 
systems  of  the  States  of  which  these  cities  form  a  part,  and  are 
subject  to  the  legislative  authority  thereof:  until  there  is  a 

35  plan  of  school  government  in  each  city  which  differentiates 
executive  acts  from  legislative  functions ;  which  emancipates 
the  legislative  branch  of  that  government  from  the  influence  of 


u 


ON  ORGANIZATION  OF  CITY   SCHOOLS.  13I 

pelf-seekers;  which  fixes  upon  individuals  the  responsibility 
for  executive  acts,  either  performed  or  omitted ;  which  gives 
to  the  intelligence  of  the  community  the  power  to  influence 
legislation  and  exact  perfect  and  complete  execution ;  which 
affords  to  every  citizen  whose  interests  are  ignored,  or  whose  5 
rights  are  invaded,  a  place  for  complaint  and  redress;  and 
which  puts  the  business  interests  upon  a  business  footing,  the 
teaching  upon  an  expert  basis,  and  gives  to  the  instruction 
that  protection  and  encouragement  which  is  vital  to  the 
development  of  all  professional  and  scientific  work.  10 

We  have  undertaken  to  indicate  the  general  principles 
which  we  think  should  be  observed  in  setting  up  the  frame- 
work of  government  of  a  large  city  school  system.  While  we 
have  no  thought  that  any  precise  form  of  organization  which 
could  be  suggested,  would,  in  all  details,  be  imperative,  we  are  15 
confident  that  the  form  or  plan  of  organization  is  of  supreme 
consequence,  and  that  any  which  disregards  the  principles  we 
have  pointed  out  will  work  to  disadvantage  or  lead  to  disaster. 

Andrew  S.  Draper, 
President  of  the  Illinois  State  University,  Champaign,  111. 

W.  B.  Powell, 
Superintendent  of  Schools,  Washington,  D.  C. 

A.  B.  Poland, 
State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction,  Trenton,  N.  J. 


I  find  myself  in  general  accord  with  the  doctrines  of  the 
report.  There  is  only  one  feature  of  it  from  which  I  feel  20 
obliged  to  dissent,  and  that  is  an  important  though  not  neces- 
sarily a  vital  one.  I  refer  to  the  office  of  school  director.  I 
see  no  need  of  such  an  officer  elected  by  the  people,  and  I  do 
see  the  danger  of  his  becoming  a  part  of  the  political  organi- 
zation for  the  dispensation  of  patronage.  25 

All  power  and  authority  in  school  affairs  should  reside  ulti- 
mately in  the  board  of  education,  consisting  of  not  more  than 
eight  persons  appointed  by  the  mayor  of  the  city,  to  hold 
office  four  years,  two  members  retiring  annually  and  eligible 
for  reappointment    once   and   no  more.     This   board    should  30 


132  REPORT   OF  THE   COMMITTEE   OF  FIFTEEN. 

appoint  as  its  chief  officer  a  superintendent  of  instruction, 
whose  tenure  should  be  during  good  behavior  and  efficiency, 
and  whose  powers  and  duties  should  be  to  a  large  extent 
defined  by  statute  law,  and  not  wholly  or  chiefly  by  the  regu- 

Slations  of  the  board  of  education.  The  superintendent  of 
instruction  should  have  a  seat  and  voice  but  not  a  vote  in  the 
board  of  education.  The  board  of  education  should  also 
appoint  a  business  agent,  and  define  his  powers  and  duties  in 
relation  to  all  matters  of  buildings,  repairs,  and  supplies,  sub- 

lostantially  asset  forth  in  the  report  in  relation  to  the  school 
director. 

All  teachers  should  be  appointed  and  annually  reappointed 
or  recommended  by  the  superintendent  of  instruction,  until 
after  a  sufficient  probation  they  are  appointed  on  a  tenure 

15  during  good  behavior  and  efficiency. 

All  matters  relating  to  courses  of  study,  text-books,  and 
examinations  should  be  left  to  the  superintendent  and  his 
assistants,  constituting  a  body  of  professional  experts  who 
should   be  regarded  as  alone   competent   to   deal   with   such 

20  matters,  and    should    be    held   accountable   therefor  to   the 

board  of  education  only  in  a  general  way,  and  not  in  particular 

details. 

Edwin  P.  Seaver, 

Superintendent  of  Schools,  Boston,  Mass. 


I  concur  in  the  recommendations  of  the  Sub-committee  on  the 
Organization  of  City  School  Systems  as  summarized  in  the  con- 

25  eluding  portion  of  the  report,  omitting  in  item  Third,  the  words 
"  And  that  it  be  constituted  of  two  branches  acting  against 
each  other."  Omit  Fifth,  "  But  we  think  it  preferable  that  he 
be  chosen  in  the  same  way  that  members  of  the  board  are  chosen 
and  be  given    veto   power  upon   the   acts  of  the  board."     I 

30  recommend  that  the  veto  power  be  given  to  the  president  of 

the  Board. 

Albert  G.  Lane, 

Superintendent  of  Schools,  Chicago,  111. 


APPENDICES 


I.     OPINIONS  SUBMITTED  TO  THE  SUB-COMMITTEE  ON  THE 
TRAINING   OF   TEACHERS 

II.     OPINIONS  SUBMITTED  TO  THE  SUB-COMMITTEE  ON  THE 
CORRELATION   OF   STUDIES 

III.     OPINIONS  SUBMITTED  TO  THE  SUB-COMMITTEE  ON  THE 
ORGANIZATION   OF   CITY   SCHOOL   SYSTEMS 


133-134 


APPENDIX   I 

OPINIONS   SUBMITTED  TO   THE  SUB-COMMITTEE  ON   THE 
TRAINING  OF  TEACHERS 

Following  are  the  questions  in  answer  to  which  the  opin- 
ions were  written : 

1.  What  should  be  the  lowest  age  at  which  a  person  should 
be  permitted  to  undertake  a  course  of  professional  work? 

2.  What  should  be  the  requirements  for  scholarship  to  enter 
on  such  a  course? 

(a)  English — Grammar,  Historical  Grammar,  Rhetoric,  Lit- 
erature. 
(d)   Mathematics — Arithmetic,  Algebra,  Geometry. 

(c)  Botany  and  Zoology. 

(d)  Drawing. 
{e)    Music. 
(/)  History. 
(g)  Geography. 
(A)   Physics. 

(t)    Chemistry. 

(J)  Foreign  languages — French,  German,  Latin,  Greek. 

(k)   Physiology  and  Hygiene. 

{/)    Mineralogy. 

3.  Should  scholarship  be  determined  by  an  examination, 
or  should  a  high-school  diplorna  be  accepted  as  evidence?  If 
the  latter,  should  a  four-years'  course  be  required  ? 

4.  What  should  be  the  duration  of  the  training-school 
course? 

5.  What  proportion  of  this  time  should  be  devoted  to 
studying  principles  and  methods  of  education?  What  pro- 
portion, to  the  practice  of  teaching? 

6.  To  what  extent  should  psychology  be  studied,  and  in 
what  way  ? 

135 


136  APPENDIX. 

7.  Along  what  lines  should  the  observation  of  children  be 
pursued? 

8.  What  measurements  of  children  should  be  made,  and 
what  apparatus  should  be  required  for  the  purpose  ? 

9.  In  what  way  should  principles  of  education  be  derived 
from  psychology  and  allied  sciences  ? 

10.  How  far  and  in  what  way  shoul<^  the  history  of  educa-^ 
tion  be  studied  ?  In  what  way  may  the  history  of  education 
be  made  of  practical  use  to  teachers  ? 

11.  In  what  way  should  the  training  in  teaching  the  vari- 
ous subjects  of  the  common-school  curriculum  be  pursued? 

(a)  By  writing  outlines  of  lessons  ? 

(d)   By  giving  lessons  to  fellow  pupil-teachers? 

(c)  By  the  study  of  books  or  periodicals  devoted  to  methods 

of  teaching? 

(d)  By  lectures  ? 

12.  In  a  model  school,  should  there  be  a  model-teacher 
placed  over  each  class  ?  Or,  should  there  be  a  model-teacher 
placed  over  every  two  classes  ?  Or,  should  the  pupil-teach- 
ers be  held  responsible  for  the  teaching  of  all  classes,  under 
the  direction  of  a  critic-teacher? 

13.  What  is  the  most  fruitful  plan  of  observing  the  work  of 
model-teachers  ? 

14.  What  is  the  most  fruitful  plan  of  criticising  the  prac- 
tice work  of  pupil-teachers  ? 

15.  Should  the  criticism  be  made  by  the  teachers  of  meth- 
odology, or  by  critic-teachers  appointed  specially  for  the  pur- 
pose, or  by  the  model-teachers  ? 

16.  Should  the  imparting  of  knowledge,  other  than  psy- 
chology, principles,  methods,  and  history  of  education,  form 
any  part  of  the  work  of  a  normal  or  training  school  ? 

17.  How  should  a  pupil-teacher's  efficiency  be  tested  in  a 
training  school? 

18.  On  what  grounds  should  the  diploma  of  a  training 
school  be  issued  ? 


ON  TRAINING  OF  TEACHERS.  1 37 


Earl  Barnes,  Professor  of  Education^ 

Stanford  University,  Palo  Alto,  Cal. 

The  training  of  teachers  seems  to  me  the  most  important  and 
the  most  difficult  question  connected  with  our  work  in  America 
to-day,  and  I  am  glad  a  systematic  effort  is  being  made  to  gather 
information  bearing  on  it.  The  conditions  vary  so  widely  in  our 
country  that  no  one  statement  will  hold  for  the  whole  country. 
With  a  wage  in  country  schools  often  as  low  as  twelve  dollars  a 
month,  we  cannot  demand  age  nor  preparation  ;  while  in  Califor- 
nia, with  the  wage  almost  never  falling  below  fifty  dollars  a 
month,  we  can  demand  much  more.  In  answering  the  questions 
I  shall  therefore  have  in  mind  the  country  and  village  teachers  in 
a  part  of  our  country  which  pays  from  thirty  dollars  to  sixty  dol- 
lars a  month  for  such  work. 

7.  Studies  on  children  should  include  observation  of  physical 
development,  simple  measurements,  sense  tests,  recognition  of 
common  pathological  conditions ;  studies  in  mental  averages, 
peculiarities  in  mental  operations,  and  tests  for  correction  ;  aes- 
thetic averages  and  peculiarities  ;  and  moral  activities,  with 
observational  studies  on  the  action  of  the  mind  of  a  child  in  deal- 
ing with  each  of  the  common  subjects  of  study  in  elementary 
schools. 

8.  The  measurements  of  children  should  be  made  along  lines 
already  worked  over,  say  along  the  lines  proposed  by  Dr.  Boas  in 
gathering  data  for  Chicago.  An  inferior  line  of  measurements 
had  better  be  followed  if  it  alone  gives  materials  for  comparison. 
Scales,  measuring  rods,  and  a  pair  of  calipers  will  be  sufficient. 

10.  The  history  of  education  is  very  badly  taught  at  present. 
It  should  be  something  more  than  a  series  of  biographies,  or  else 
nothing.  I  believe  the  history  of  education  can  be  made  a  very 
valuable  study,  and  that,  if  well  taught,  it  would  take  place  next 
to  psychology  in  the  course.  Psychology  should  ask.  What  is 
the  mind  we  are  training  ?  History  of  education  should  ask.  How 
has  the  mind  become  what  it  is?  It  should  be  studied  from 
original  records,  as  in  literature  or  science,  and  it  should  ask  in 
successive  periods  of  human  development  :  i.  What  kind  of  men 
and  women  were  in  demand  at  this  time  ?     What  were  the  ideals  ? 

2.  What  influences,  conscious  or  unconscious,  were  brought  to 
bear  upon  the  young  through  religion,  arts,  literature,  schools, 
and   homes,  to    make   more   of   the    men   and   women    desired  ? 

3.  How  far  did  the  effort  to  perpetuate  or  to  realize  their  ideal 
succeed?  4.  If  it  failed,  why  ?  Coming  to  our  own  time  we  could 
ask.  What  kinds  of  men  and  women  are  in  demand  ?  Judging 
from  the  experience  of  the  past,  how  can  we  go  to  work  to  make 
more  such  men  and  women  as  we  want  ?  The  manuals  of  school 
theory  and  personal  biography  can  well  be  crowded  into  a  brief 
informational  course. 

11.  Children  should  be  observed  and  studied  while-  trying  to 
learn  the  common  subjects.     Then  by  class  discussion  general 


138  APPENDIX. 

principles  should  be  drawn  out.  The  students  should  draught  sam-  ^ 
pie  lessons — these  should  be  discussed  and  corrected.  Then  the  j 
students  should  read  and  hear  lectures,  then  form  more  lessons  j 
and  teach  them.  | 

12,  Not  too  many  model-teachers — they  are  dangerous.  , 

13.  They  should  not  be  observed  as  models  before  trying  to  \ 
teach.  j 

Mrs.  Sara  F.  Bliss,  Normal  Training  School,  \ 

Providence,  R.  I. 

2.  A  good  high-school  education,  including  a  large  part  of  the 
outline  laid  down  on  the  question  paper.  The  knowledge  obtained 
is  not  necessarily  called  into  requisition  in  any  or  every  department 
of  teaching,  but  the  discipline  derived  from  a  thorough  and  careful 
study  of  the  different  subjects  gives  a  wide  general  scope  and  pro- 
vides power.  "Knowledge"  (all  things  being  equal)  ''is  power." 
The  foreign  languages,  while  they  are  a  means  of  excellent  disci- 
pline and  culture,  are  not  essential  in  preparation  for  primary  or 
grammar  school  work. 

6.  Psychology  should  be  studied  as  a  science,  and  at  the  same 
time  by  the  study  of  individuals.  To  be  able  to  formulate  and 
detect  various  conditions  of  mental  power  and  action,  requires 
enlightenment  and  wise  direction,  also  capable  supervision  in  the 
application  of  the  science.  The  teacher  needs  to  study  children  or 
a  child  at  work,  at  play,  in  his  relation  to  others,  his  playmates,  his 
elders,  in  his  unconscious  moments,  when  left  to  himself,  when  he 
is  interested  in  his  own  devices,  when  indolent  and  inactive,  when 
he  is  being  instructed,  etc.  Is  it  possible  each  day  for  the  teacher 
to  arouse  the  activities  of  interest,  growth,  and  thought  ?  Such  is 
the  real  study  of  psychology. 

10.  The  history  of  education  should  be  studied  not  simply  to 
become  acquainted  with  the  facts  that  there  have  been  such  enlight- 
ened educators,  at  certain  periods,  and  what  they  thought,  but 
their  theories,  principles,  the  actual  schools  of  such  individuals,  their 
influence  upon  the  masses  or  upon  a  select  few.  The  most  useful 
feature,  however,  is  the  influence  upon  the  world  ;  how  far  reach- 
ing, to  what  extent,  we  are  affected  by  them.  Bacon's  theories 
mark  a  period  in  the  evolution  of  education  in  England. 

11.  The  four  processes  mentioned  on  the  question  proper  are 
useful  in  their  respective  places.  The  actual  observation  and  prac- 
tice with  classes  of  children  to  whom  the  subjects  are  suited,  give 
far  more  enlightenment.  In  the  theory  class,  one  well-developed 
lesson  putting  into  practice  the  previous  study  is  of  greater  value 
than  the  other  four.  The  theory  is  by  no  means  sufficient :  unless 
the  teacher  in  practice  has  a  personality,  a  power  to  arouse,  stimu- 
late to  action,  all  the  study  and  preparation  in  the  world  will  prove 
a  failure. 

12.  It  is  not  necessary  to  have  a  model-teacher  for  each  class. 
One  model-teacher  may  also  be  a  critic-teacher.  A  critic  should 
be  able  to  give  good  model  lessons.     One  critic,  who  is  at  the 


ON  TRAINING  OF  TEACHERS.  1 39 

same  time  a  model-teacher,  may  direct  two  rooms.  It  is  not  possi- 
ble, however,  to  secure  in  every  direction  as  good  results  as  one 
teacher  well  trained  may  get  by  consecutive  lessons  from  day  to 
day.  The  only  way  to  train  a  teacher  is  to  give  her  sufficient 
responsibility  and  practice  and  discipline  to  become  mistress  of  the 
situation.  She  should  be  held  responsible  to  a  certain  extent, 
though  allowance  should  be  made  for  inexperience.  The  critic 
should  see  to  it  that  the  children  under  the  charge  of  the  pupil- 
teacher  do  not  eventually  suffer.  She  should  herself  be  able  to 
make  provisions  for  defects  to  some  extent. 

A.  C.  BOYDEN,  Bridgewater,  Mass. 

11.  Outlines  of  lessons  by  pupil-teachers  lead  to  formalism,  to  a 
transfer  of  thought  from  the  individual  child  to  the  subject-matter 
in  its  mere  logical  relations. 

Giving  lessons  to  fellow  pupil-teachers  is  valuable  as  a  training 
in  self-confidence,  in  directing  thought,  in  meeting  and  answering 
questions,  in  acquiring  skill,  in  putting  questions,  handling  appara- 
tus, etc. 

12.  Investigation  and  discussion  of  the  subject  from  the  teacher's 
standpoint  with  a  live  teacher  is  the  best  preparation.  It  furnishes 
inspiration,  broader  views,  methods  of  arrangement  and  presenta- 
tion, and  suggestions  of  device,  which  books  and  lectures  fail  to 
give. 

Richard  G.  Boone,  Principal  of  the  State  Normal  School, 

Ypsilanti,  Mich. 

The  teachers  of  secondary  schools  differ,  obviously,  from  those 
doing  elementary  work,  in  that  the  scholastic  requirements  of  the 
former  are  both  absolutely  and  relatively  greater.  Absolutely 
greater,  as  the  work  done,  the  same  in  subject-matter, — science,  the 
humanities,  languages,  and  mathematics, — is  more  comprehensive, 
and  the  corresponding  processes  comparative  and  critical  rather 
than  individual  and  descriptive.  Ail  of  which  implies  in  the 
teacher  abundant  insights  and  habits  of  discrimination,  re-enforced 
by  disciplined  powers  and  large  scholarship. 

But  if,  e.  g.,  elementary  teaching  is  intelligent  only  with  a  good 
elementary  training  plus  a  secondary  education,  instruction  in  the 
secondary  school  equally  requires  of  the  teacher,  added  to  its  own 
richest  scholarship,  the  spirit  and  learning  of  the  university  and 
the  habits  and  temper  of  the  original  investigator. 

There  is  needed  also  a  training  in  some  school  upon  true  univer- 
sity foundations,  in  which  the  secondary  teacher  shall  have  proved 
his  claims  to  independent  research  and  his  resourcefulness  in  han- 
dling the  raw  materials  of  his  course.  This  does  not  mean  that 
the  individual  teaching  and  investigative  devices  of  the  university 
are  to  be  of  necessity  introduced  into  the  secondary  school  ;  or 
that  the  time  here  shall  be  given  over  to  original  inquiry  and  labo- 
ratory research.  The  high  school  is  essentially  a  teaching  body. 
The  relative  immaturity  of  the  students,  the  accompanying  neces- 


I40  APPENDIX. 

sity  of  dealing  with  generalizations  and  rules  and  verifications,  and 
the  fact  that  the  choice  of  a  life-work,  at  least  among  learned 
occupations,  is  yet  some  years  away,  make  instruction,  not  training 
or  individual  research,  to  be  the  chief  function  of  the  secondary 
school. 

As  the  student  grows  older  and  more  self-helpful  and  capable  of 
directing  his  own  studies  within  wide  limits,  as  in  the  later  college 
and  university  years,  one  may  allow  for  less  of  professional  insight 
and  skill,  and  more  for  scholarship. 

The  university  training,  or  a  course  grounded  upon  a  liberal 
culture  and  after  the  individual  methods  of  the  laboratory  and  the 
seminary,  may  be  made  to  contribute  more  than  any  inferior  school 
to  the  resourcefulness  of  teaching  and  to  an  independence  of  mere 
recipes  and  formulae.  This  elevation  of  the  plane  of  criticism  and 
guidance  through  the  possession  of  generous  standards  and  right 
habits  of  thinking  are  increasingly  needed  as  the  child  grows  older, 
until  he  reaches  years  of  something  like  self-helpfulness. 

It  is  most  needed  by  the  secondary  teacher,  inasmuch  as  the 
course  pursued  in  secondary  schools  covers  the  most  critical  because 
transition  period  in  the  individual's  life.  These  years  are  the  most 
important  in  an  educational  way,  not  because  the  most  fruitful,  for 
the  first  six  or  eight  years  of  a  child's  life  would  certainly  take  pre- 
cedence ;  not  because  of  the  introduction  of  any  new  means,  or  any 
new  standards  of  life  ;  but  rather  because  of  the  confusion  and 
complexity  of  the  life  in  these  years,  and  yet  more  because  they  are 
so  little  understood.  New  interests  are  springing  up  ;  new  motives 
prevail  ;  new  dangers  are  imminent  ;  new  and  greater  prospects 
stretch  out  and  multiply.  To  direct  the  energies  into  and  through 
this  adolescent  period  demands  the  largest  heart  not  less  than  a 
well-filled  head  ;  an  understanding  of  the  conditioning  factors  in 
this  new  life,  and  how  to  use  them  ;  a  trained  sympathy  with  its 
wants  and  waywardness.  To  say  that  these  may  not  be  given  to 
one  is  to  repeat  the  objection  used  against  normal  schools  so  indis- 
criminately fifty  and  forty  years  ago. 

To  concede  that  the  real  purpose  of  the  secondary  school  is 
education  and  not  training  or  cram,  is  to  concede  at  once  that  the 
teachers  of  secondary  schools  have  need  of  a  complete  and  suitable 
preparation,  just  as  do  lower  class  teachers.  That  they  need  it 
more  than  do  many  other  teachers,  follows  from  the  complexity  and 
stubbornness  of  the  conditions. 

The  high  school,  though  of  the  highest  secondary  rank,  belongs 
in  its  interests  and  methods  to  the  common-school  system,  and  fits  its 
own  teaching  to  the  accomplished  results  of  the  elementary  school. 
To  do  the  work  of  the  one  well,  requires  a  knowledge  of  the  other. 
Looked  at  from  this  side,  the  preparation  of  the  secondary  teacher 
should  include  professional  and  practical  acquaintance  with  the  cur- 
riculum, and  children,  and  the  institutional  and  social  conditions, 
and  inner  working  of  elementary  schools. 

This  point  needs  emphasis  because  the  preparation  of  teachers 
for  secondary  education,  when  it  has  been  undertaken  at  all,  has 
usually  been  from  the  point  of  view  of  the  college  and  of  scholar- 


ON  TRAINING  OF  TEACHERS.  I4I 

ship  as  satisfying  every  requirement.  High-school  teachers  should 
have  had  at  least  a  cadet  training  for  a  minimum  time  in  element- 
ary schools,  if  indeed  they  do  not  take  their  promotion  to  the 
higher  classes  from  the  lower. 

Summarizing  briefly  the  points  enumerated,  they  are  as  follows  : 

1.  The  scholarship  of  secondary  teachers  should  be  relatively 
more  abundant  than  that  for  elementary  teachers,  and  is  equally 
urgent. 

2.  The  fact  that  the  secondary  school  is  a  teaching  body,  and  not 
an  organization  for  research,  emphasizes  the  need  of  professional 
training  in  its  teachers. 

3.  The  preparation  of  such  teachers  should  include,  also,  an  inti- 
mate and  patient  study  of  the  adolescent,  as  the  most  significant 
fact  in  the  secondary  period. 

4.  Because  the  secondary  school  is  often  wholly,  and  always  more 
or  less,  a  finishing  school,  the  training  of  its  teachers  should  include 
both  a  theoretical  and  practical  acquaintance  with  the  organization 
and  work  of  the  under  classes. 

5.  Inasmuch  as  it  is  sometimes  a  fitting  school,  and  is  growing  in 
this  service,  the  training  of  its  teachers  should  include  an  equally 
efficient  acquaintance  with  the  constitution  and  culture  of  the 
superior  schools  depending  upon  it. 

This  implies  : 

(i)  The  scholarship  and  training  that  come  to  one  from  its  class- 
rooms and  laboratories  ;  and 

(2)  A  well-directed  professional  study  of  the  leading  educational 
and  administrative  problems  that  are  common  to  the  two  schools, 
and  those  especially  that  are  incident  to  the  period  of  youth. 

F.  B.  Gault,  President  of  the  University  of  Idaho, 

Moscow,  Idaho. 

I  find  a  marked  weakness  in  the  professional  training  of  teachers. 
I  would  rather  place  a  young  girl,  granted  she  has  requisite  culture 
and  an  ambition  to  succeed,  in  a  school  with  an  able  teacher,  and 
let  her  assist  in  the  drudgery,  acting  as  a  cadet  or  helper,  than  to 
run  the  risk  of  having  her  pass  through  a  training  school  with  critic- 
teacher  attachments. 

5.  If  the  course  is  one  year,  devote  all  the  time  to  study  of  prin- 
ciples and  methods.  True  professional  preparation  consists  of 
training  under  teaching,  not  by  teaching.  My  best  teachers  have 
always  come  from  the  best  schools.  I  think  that  practice-teaching 
in  the  model  or  training  school  is  of  little  benefit  to  any  one.  If 
the  school  does  good  teaching,  if  it  arouses  the  teaching  ideal  and 
teaching  spirit,  if  it  exemplifies  the  best  in  both  form  and  spirit  of 
teaching,  the  student  will  come  out  a  teacher,  even  though  there  is 
not  a  day  of  practice  work.  Critic-teachers,  expert  trainers,  et  al., 
maim  and  pervert  as  many  teachers  as  they  aid.  The  spirit  of  the 
training  or  professional  school  is  worth  more  than  training  in  con- 
ventional forms. 

9.  I  have  little  faith  in  professional  training  that  does  not  apply 


142  APPENDIX. 

the  psychology  upon  the  scholastic  branches.  The  best  psychology^ 
must  accompany  the  best  daily  scholastic  work.  It  must  not  be 
top-dressing,  but  an  outgrowth  of  the  daily  experience  of  the  teache| 
while  under  training.  Psychology  is  not  a  separate  and  detacheJ 
study.     It  is  under,  above,  and  about  every  branch.  1 

II.  I  think  the  best  professional  training  will  come  only  with  schoJ 
lastic  training  as  the  basis,  under  masterful  teachers,  who  inspirej 
students  with  a  desire  to  teach  and  to  teach  well,  and  who  are  abL 
to  reveal  the  bearings  of  things.  With  some  well-fixed  scientific 
principles,  with  professional  enthusiasm,  with  something  of  a 
inventive  spirit  aroused,  the  young  teacher  may  safely  go  out  t 
conduct  a  model  school  for  himself,  with  his  own  ideals  as  critic 
teacher,  and  succeed.  The  tendency  of  normal  training  is  to  brin 
the  teacher  to  a  full  stop  intellectually  and  professionally. 

J.  M.  Greenwood,  Superintendent  of  Schools,  "^ 

Kansas  City,  Mo. 

5.  About  two-thirds  of  the  time  should  be  devoted  to  the* dis- 
cussion of  principles  and  methods  of  teaching,  and  not  more  than 
one-third  to  practice-teaching.  Practice-teaching,  **  in  leading- 
strings,"  has  little  independent  educational  value. 

6.  Probably  the  best  way  for  a  beginner  to  take  up  psychology 
is  to  require  him  or  her  to  analyze  a  mental  process,  such  as  reciting 
a  lesson,  or  solving  a  problem,  or  writing  a  letter,  and  to  place  each 
act  of  the  mind  during  the  process  where  it  belongs.  In  this  way 
the  learner  gets  the  technique  of  psychology  ;  but  the  real  study 
must  oroceed  from  the  standpoint  of  the  *'  will  and  motives''  All' 
scientific  teaching  depends  upon  psychology  ;  it  is  the  psychology 
which  fits  into  every-day  work.  Much  of  it,  as  some  get  hold  of  it, 
is  of  such  an  intangible  nature  that  it  has  no  bearing  on  ordinary 
affairs.  A  good  working  psychology,  derived  from  introspection  and 
observation,  is  what  the  average  teacher  needs. 

7.  As  a  general  thing,  I  would  not  advise  teachers  to  make  a 
critical  physical  examination  of  children.  To  find  out  whether 
they  hear  well  and  have  good  eyes,  will  be  sufficient  in  most  cases. 
Mental  and  moral  traits  should  be  carefully  noted  according  to  a 
scheme  prepared  by  the  superintendent.  A  blank,  not  too  elaborate, 
will  cover  all  necessary  traits — bodily,  mental,  and  moral. 

II.  (i)  By  analyzing  each  lesson;  (2)  by  selecting  the  salient 
points  for  the  recitation  ;  (3)  by  presenting  them  in  an  orderly' 
manner,  provided  the  learners'  minds  have  been  properly  prepared  ; 
(4)  by  connecting  the  lesson  with  all  that  had  preceded  it  ;  (5)  by 
having  it  reproduced  and  then  clinched  ;  (6)  by  having  it  prac- 
tically applied  ;  (7)  by  special  and  general  discussion.  The  teacher 
needs  to  be  trained  so  as  to  discriminate  sharply  between  the 
essentials  and  the  non-essentials  in  every  recitation. 

14.  Too  much  criticism  hampers.  The  first  thing  to  show  the 
beginner  is  what  I  call  "schoolroom  tactics,"  which  includes  all 
class  movements  regulated  by  signals,  promptly  and  cheerfully 
obeyed.     The  critic-teacher  should  go  through  these  movements 


ON  TRAINING  OF  TEACHERS.  I43 

first  and  in  the  presence  of  the  beginner.  As  soon  as  the  beginner 
has  the  room  well  in  hand,  instruction  in  the  branches  should 
begin.  Here,  again,  the  critic  must  know  whether  it  is  better  to  let 
the  beginner  flounder  for  awhile,  or  to  take  hold  and  "  straighten 
things  out."  It  depends  !  ''  Heady  novices  "  oftentimes  are  helped 
by  running  against  the  wall.  A  sympathetic  critic-  I  do  not  like 
the  word  "  critic  "  in  this  connection — can  watch  several  rooms  ;  but 
a  majority  of  the  critic-teachers  I  have  seen  at  work  were  pedantic 
hinderances  instead  of  helpers.  The  best  helpers  are  those  who  sit 
quietly  in  the  room,  and  then,  when  the  session  has  closed,  talk 
with  the  beginner  over  the  work,  asking  her  why  she  did  this  or 
that — approving  the  good,  and  suggesting  remedies  for  what  was 
poorly  done. 

B.  C.  Gregory,  Supervising  Principal,  Trenton,  N.  J. 

I.  If  pupils  are  to  be  permitted  to  enter  who  have  not  completed 
a  high-school  course,  I  would  postpone  the  time  of  entering  ;  that  is 
to  say,  the  maturity  will  come  earlier  if  the  development  is  aided  by 
the  high  school  than  if  it  is  not  thus  aided.  Thus  the  high  school 
requirement  naturally  leads  to  eighteen  as  an  average  age  of  en- 
trance ;  but  if  the  pupil  has  not  had  the  advantage  of  a  high-school 
course,  I  should  hesitate  to  concede  him  an  equal  maturity  for  two 
or  three  years  after  that  age.  But,  as  the  undergraduates  of  high 
schools  and  grammar  schools  who  enter  the  normal  schools  are  of 
less  age  than  the  high-school  graduate,  the  practice  of  normal 
schools  in  admitting  these  persons  is  to  reverse  the  action  of  the 
law  suggested  by  my  opinion  as  above.  If  my  position  is  correct, 
the  immaturity  of  many  normal-school  pupils  is  worthy  of  serious 
consideration.  For,  if  a  girl  leaves  the  high  school  before  com- 
pleting the  course,  this  act  ought  not  to  hasten  her  entrance  into 
the  normal  school,  but  ought  the  rather  to  postpone  it  beyond  the 
time  when  she  would  have  graduated  from  the  high  school. 

5.  The  question  seems  to  imply  that  a  certain  section  of  the  year 
should  be  given  to  the  one  kind  of  training,  and  a  certain  section  to 
the  other.  In  my  judgment,  the  best  method  is  found  in  carrying 
on  the  two  kinds  of  training  simultaneously.  If  possible,  I  would 
have  a  part  of  each  week  given  to  teaching,  and  a  part  to  principles, 
etc.  This  plan  enables  the  pupil-teacher  to  revise  her  theories  in 
the  light  of  experience  ;  it  gives  her  something  of  the  experience  of 
a  regular  teacher.  Much  of  the  instruction  in  principles  and  methods 
can  be  appropriated  only  if  put  to  the  test  of  trial.  It  is  the  old 
law  of  "  education  by  doing,"  which  applies  to  the  normal  pupil 
equally  with  the  primary  pupil.  But  if  the  instruction  in  theory  is 
given  in  a  lump,  and  the  practice  taken  in  the  same  way,  much  of 
the  theory  will  not  be  digested,  and  will  find  little  expression  in  the 
teaching.  In  the  work  of  the  regular  teacher,  progress  comes  from 
testing  a  theory,  which,  being  found  imperfect,  is  reconsidered  and 
retested.  The  normal-school  course  should  follow  this  hint.  I 
would,  therefore,  carry  the  practice  of  teaching  throughout  the  whole 
course,  giving  it  very  nearly  one-half  the  time. 


144  APPENDIX. 

6.  In  my  judgment,  much  of  the  time  spent  in  teaching  psychology  j 
in  normal  schools  is  lost.     I  do  not  think  that  too  much  time  is  spent   1 
on  the  subject,  but  that  the  teaching  is  not  conducted  in  such  a  way  ! 
as  to  result  in  much  good ;  indeed,  I  would  spend  more  time  on  the  j 
subject  than  is  usually  given  to  it.     I  would  have  the  usual  course  1 
in  theoretical  psychology,  but  I  would  have  it  much  simpler  than  is  \ 
usually  the    case.      Then  I   would    have  an  additional   course   in 
applied  psychology,  bringing  the  subject  into  actual  touch  with  the 
details  of  schoolroom  work  ;  this  is  generally  left  out ;  it  is  the  pa- 
thology of  the  subject.    To  be  effective, this  course  must  be  constantly 
subjected  to  verification  through  the  experiences  of  the  classroom. 
My  distribution  of  the  time  allotted  respectively  to  the  principles 
and  to  the  practice  of  teaching  (see  5)  is  necessary  to  carry  out  this 
idea. 

10.  My  opinion  is  that  this  branch  of  pedagogy  requires  consid- 
erable maturity.  It  comes  properly  at  the  end  of  a  normal  course,  | 
when  the  pupil  has  been  trained  to  consider  principles  of  education 
rather  than  devices,  and  when  the  habit  of  psychological  thinking 
has  been  developed ;  then  the  student  is  prepared  to  consider  the 
historical  evolution  of  the  principles  of  which  she  has  already  some 
practical  knowledge. 

14.  The  most  valuable  kind  of  criticism  is  given,  however,  in  the 
critic  class.  This  class  should  be  held  once  a  week,  and  should  be 
presided  over  by  the  critic-teacher  or  principal  of  the  training  school. 
The  criticisms  on  each  pupil-teacher  should  be  read  in  class.  At 
first  there  is  sensitiveness  on  the  part  of  the  pupil-teacher,  but  my 
experience  is  that,  where  the  matter  is  managed  wisely  and  kindly, 
this  feeling  disappears.  The  error  of  one  pupil-teacher  reported 
by  a  training  teacher  is  often  a  typical  error,  which  easily  might 
have  been  the  error  of  any  other  member  of  the  training  class.  The 
general  discussion  of  the  points  of  criticism  in  open  class  proves 
exceedingly  helpful  and  stimulating  to  all  present. 

Paul  H.  Hanus,  Assistant  Professor  of  the  History  and  Art 
of  Teaching,  Harvard  University,  Cambridge,  Mass. 

2.  The  first  element  of  professional  training  for  secondary-school 
teachers  is  scholarship.  Without  a  full  and  ready  knowledge  of 
the  subject  he  has  to  teach — a  knowledge  which  extends  in  scope 
and  thoroughness  far  beyond  what  is  required  of  his  pupils — no  ^ 
teacher,  whatever  his  natural  or  acquired  teaching  power  may  be, 
can  become,  as  he  should,  the  trustworthy,  inspiring,  and  vigorous 
leader  of  his  pupils.  In  most  instances,  failure  to  attain  a  respect- 
able standard  of  achievement  even  as  a  mere  classroom  teacher  is 
due  more  to  the  want  of  scholarship  than  to  deficiency  in  teaching  . 
power.  Scholarship  is  therefore  fundamental.  Besides  being  com- 
prehensive in  scope  and  thorough  in  quality,  it  should  cover  special 
proficiency  in  that  one  subject  or  group  of  closely  related  subjects 
which  the  future  teacher  expects  to  teach.  Such  scholarship  is 
possessed  by  college  graduates  who  have  made  good  use  of  their 
opportunities.     Hence  only  such  college  graduates,  or  persons  who 


ON  TRAINING  OF  TEACHERS.  I45 

give  evidence  of  attainments  in  scholarship  equal  to  those  of  such 
tj^rad nates,  should  be  considered  eligible  to  positions  as  teachers  in 
secondary  schools. 

But  scholarship,  though  fundamental,  is  not  enough.  The  future 
teacher  must  learn  how  to  use  his  knowledge  wisely  and  effectively 
as  a  teacher'.  The  secondary-school  teacher  is  primarily  not  a  teacher 
of  subjects  at  all,  "but  a  teacher  of  minds  by  means  of  subjects." 
To  teach  the  subject,  to  be  a  specialist  pure  and  simple,  that  is  the 
function  of  the  college  or  university  professor. 

The  secondary-school  teacher  must  learn  how  to  use  his  subject 
as  a  means  of  discovering  his  pupil  as  well  as  of  instructing  him. 
Before  he  can  develop  his  pupil's  interest  and  power,  he  must  know 
what  they  are  Having  discovered  his  pupil,  he  must  then  learn 
how,  with  the  help  of  instruction,  he  can  best  promote  the  pupil's 
development. 

The  well-trained  secondary-school  teacher  must  therefore  be 
more  than  a  classroom  teacher,  important  as  his  work  in  the  class- 
room is.  He  must  extend  his  horizon  beyond  his  own  subject  and 
his  own  immediate  duties.  He  must  see  his  subject  in  its  relation 
to  other  subjects.  He  must  study  it  so  as  to  form  a  just  estimate 
of  its  educational  value.  He  must  see  the  relation  of  his  own  daily 
work  to  that  of  his  fellow-workers.  He  must  therefore  obtain  a 
clear  conception  of  the  aims  and  means  as  well  as  of  the  methods  of 
education,  in  order  that  he  may  develop  the  co7tscious  purposes  that 
should  determine  the  whole  nature  and  quality  of  his  work.  He 
must  also  learn  how  to  provide  for  his  pupils  the  most  salutary 
physical  environment,  and  how  he  can  best  promote  their  normal 
physical  development.  To  inculcate  such  a  conception  of  the 
teacher's  work  is  the  function  of  educational  theory.  The  second 
phase  of  professional  training  for  secondary-school  teachers  is, 
therefore,  educational  theory,  which  comprises  : 

(i)  The  study  of  the  scope  aitd  meaning  of  education. 

(2)  The  study  oi psychology  applied  to  teaching. 

Such  a  study  presupposes  som.e  acquaintance  with  psychology  as 
a  science,  and  means  such  a  further  study  of  the  mind  and  of  its 
develop7nent  2js>  will  enable  one  to  enter  into  the  mind's  processes  in 
acquisition  and  to  realize  a  youth's  mental  life.  To  this  end  the 
teacher  must  learn  that  he  now  studies  pyschology,  not  for  its  own 
sake,  but  for  the  sake  of  his  pupils  ;  that  he  is  not  to  attempt  new 
discoveries  in  psycholog^y,  but  to  acquire  for  himself  a  new  mental 
attitude  ;  that  he  is  to  learn  how  to  trace  the  links  in  a  chain  of 
complex  mental  phenomena,  how  to  facilitate  the  accomplishment 
cf  a  difficult  task,  how  to  promote  a  gain  in  will  power,  the  birth  of 
a  new  impulse,  or  the  development  of  a  new  affection.  Such  a 
study  of  psychology  should  aim  to  develop  in  the  future  teacher 
the  spirit  and  attitude  of  the  observing  naturalist.  It  should  be 
begun  through  lectures,  supplemented  by  a  careful  study  of  the  work 
of  the  most  inspiring  and  successful  teachers  in  their  classrooms ;  but 
such  a  study  of  psychology  should  become  the  lifelong  habit  of 
the  teacher,  and  its  best  and  most  fruitful  results  are  not  attainable 
until  he  teaches  his  own  classes  in  his  own  school. 


140  APPENDIX. 

(3)  The  study  of  (a)  educational  values  and  {b)  of  the  correlation 
of  studies. 

{a)  This  means  an  attempt  to  make  clear  the  characteristic  effi- 
cacy of  the  several  subjects  in  promoting  the  realization  of  the  aim 
of  education,  and  to  determine  their  relative  values  in  this  regard. 
Such  study  gives  the  teacher  perspective.  While  it  dignifies  his 
own  subject,  it  enables  him  to  see  what  it  cannot  do  as  well  as  what 
it  can  do.  He  learns  its  specific  and  its  general  educatio7ial  values  ; 
i.e.,  he  learns  to  what  extent  its  data  are  involved  in  other  subjects, 
and  how  far  its  method  is  applicable  to  other  subjects,  and  to  what 
extent  its  data  and  method  are  restricted  to  its  own  range. 

{b)  This  means  the  endeavor  to  find  and  provide  for  the  many 
natural  associations  between  the  different  subjects  of  instruction, 
so  that  the  pupil's  acquisitions  may  thereby  gain  in  significance  and 
permanence  ;  and  also  that  the  development  by  the  pupils  of  the 
important  habit  of  seeking  and  holding  fast  the  relations  between 
all  their  acquisitions,  may  be  promoted. 

(4)  Some  study  of  the  gefieral  principles  of  method.  Broad 
generalizations  only  are  desirable.  Method  is  best  studied  in  de- 
tail in  the  form  of  methods  of  teaching  individual  subjects  in  which 
general  principles  are  applied  and  illustrated. 

(5)  The  study  of  the  general  principles  of  discipline,  including 
moral  training. 

(6)  The  general  principles  of  school  hygiene.^  including  {a)  the 
hygiene  of  buildings,  (b)  the  hygiene  of  pupils. 

\a)  Including  systems  of  heating,  lighting,  ventilation,  and  school 
furniture. 

{b)  Including  the  general  laws  of  health  and  physical  culture. 

3.  The  third  feature  of  professional  training  is  the  history  of  edu- 
cational theories  and  practice.  In  education,  as  in  all  other  human 
activities,  we  cannot  dispense  with  the  lessons  of  past  experience. 
"  If  we  ignore  the  past,  we  cannot  understand  the  present  or  fore- 
cast the  future,"  Hence  the  future  teacher  should  study  the  his- 
tory of  education  in  order  that  he  may  become  acquainted  with  the 
most  important  educational  classics,  and  thus  obtain  foundation  for 
the  criticism  of  present  theories  and  practices  in  the  light  of  their 
historical  evolution,  and  incidentally  acquire  many  rules  for  guid- 
ance in  the  actual  work  of  teaching.  Such  study  naturally  includes 
a  brief  consideration  of  education  in  Greece,  Rome,  and  the  middle 
ages.  Much  more  attention  should  be  given  to  the  history  of  edu- 
cation and  teaching  since  the  Renaissance  in  Europe  (England, 
France,  and  Germany),  in  order  to  trace  the  gradual  development 
of  modern  ideals  and  practice,  and  to  the  history  of  education  and 
teaching  in  the  United  States.  Such  work,  in  addition  to  the  in- 
struction, should  require  much  reading  on  the  part  of  the  student, 
and  frequent  historical  and  critical  summaries  and  essays. 

4.  But  the  professional  student  cannot  be  content  with  scholar- 
ship, educational  theory,  and  the  history  of  educational  theories 
and  practice.  He  must  study  the  organization  and  work  of  present 
school  systems  in  actual  operation;  he  must  know  the  constitution, 
powers,  and  duties  of  school  committees  ;  he  must  be  familiar  with 


ON  TRAINING  OF  TEACHERS.  I47 

the  means  available  to  the  teacher  for  the  realization  of  his  ends  ; 
he  must  know  some  of  the  practical  daily  problems  of  organization, 
management,  and  teaching,  and  must  learn  how  those  problems  are 
to  be  met. 

The  fourth  feature  of  professional  training  for  secondary-school 
teachers,  and  for  those  who  look  forward  to  the  higher  positions 
in  the  educational  field  generally,  is,  accordingly,  the  study  of  the 
organization  and  management  of  school  and  school  system^  including 
courses  of  study,  supervision,  and  teaching. 

Such  study  should  enable  students  to  become  familiar  with  and 
to  understand  the  organization  and  administration  of  schools  and 
school  systems  through  direct  observation  and  comparative  study. 
In  studying  the  school  systems  of  American  cities,  a  detailed  exam- 
ination of  their  courses  of  study  should  be  undertaken,  and  the 
principles  on  which  any  course  of  study  should  be  based  should  be 
discussed.  The  duties  of  superintendents,  principals,  and  teachers 
should  be  considered.  Attention  should  be  given  to  details  of 
school  management,  such  as  the  management  of  classes,  examina- 
tions and  promotions,  discipline  ;  and  some  attention  should  be 
given  to  methods  of  teaching  the  elementary  subjects.  Students 
should  observe,  under  direction,  the  administration  and  work  of 
public  schools  and  school  systems,  and  of  academies  in  the  vicinity. 
Such  study  of  the  actual  work  of  teaching  and  administration 
should  be  pursued  regularly  and  persistently  ;  at  first  for  general 
impressions,  then  for  details.  Frequent  reports  of  the  visits  for 
such  study  should  be  made,  orally  and  in  writing,  and  these  reports 
should  give  rise  to  much  classroom  discussion.  In  this  way  each 
student  should  make  a  general  comparative  study  of  many  schools, 
and  a  more  detailed  study  of  the  teaching  in  all  the  grades,  includ- 
ing the  high  school,  of  at  least  two  school  systems  in  his  vicinity, 
if  the  locality  affords  opportunity  for  such  study  ;  otherwise  this 
detailed  study  should  cover  the  teaching  in  all  the  grades  of  at  least 
two  schools  below  the  high  school,  and,  of  course,  the  high-school 
grades  as  well.  Students  should  also  be  required  to  acquaint  them- 
selves with  any  supplementary  activities  of  the  schools  they  study, 
such  as  the  work  of  literary  or  scientific  societies  or  clubs.  Mean- 
while they  should  follow  a  prescribed  course  of  reading  on  admin- 
istration and  teaching,  and  the  instruction  they  receive  should  aim 
to  make  all  their  work  significant  and  serviceable.  Toward  the 
close  of  the  period  devoted  to  this  study  of  administration  and 
teaching  an  opportunity  should  be  given  to  students  to  specialize  in 
the  direction  of  the  particular  subject  or  subjects  they  expect  to 
teach.  In  that  subject  (or  those  subjects)  the  student  should 
study  carefully  all  the  teaching  resources — text-books,  reference 
books,  and  apparatus — and  present  critical  estimates  of  the  relative 
values  of  the  books  and  apparatus  he  finds  in  use,  or  which  he  him- 
self recommends  ;  and  he  should  study  with  special  care  the  teach- 
ing of  that  subject  (or  subjects)  from  the  beginning,  wherever  they 
may  be,  through  the  high  school. 

Finally,  each  student  should  be  required  to  submit  a  thesis  on  the 
organization  and  administration  of  a  city  school  system,  in  which 


148  APPENDIX. 

Special  attention  should  be  given  to  the  course  of  study,  together 
with  direction  for  its  rational  and  effective  administration.  In  this 
thesis  particular  attention  should,  of  course,  be  given  to  the  student's 
specialty,  for  which  all  the  details  of  the  course  of  study,  teaching 
resources,  and  methods  of  teaching  should  be  fully  treated. 

Also,  near  the  close  of  the  period  devoted  to  the  work  just 
described  (or  after  that  work  is  completed),  systematic  instruction 
in  methods  of  teaching  the  several  subjects  m  a  secondary  school 
course  of  study  should  be  given  by  college  instructors  and  by  the 
best  instructors  that  can  be  procured  from  the  secondary  school. 

Through  their  study  of  the  teaching  in  the  schools,  the  students 
have  learned  how  portions  of  the  different  subjects  are  taught  by 
individual  teachers.  Such  study  was  necessary  in  order  to  render 
a  systematic  presentation  of  the  methods  of  teaching  the  several 
subjects  significant.  They  still  need  a  systematic  presentation  of 
the  method  of  teaching  each  subject  for  the  sake  of  definiteness 
and  completeness.  Such  instruction  should  be  obligatory  for  each 
student  so  far  as  his  own  specialty  is  concerned.  It  should,  of 
course,  cover  the  planning  and  methods  of  conducting  class  work 
under  the  conditions  obtaining  in  public  schools  and  academies. 

When  this  work  has  been  completed,  two  or  three  State  school 
systems  and  two  or  three  European  systems — say  the  school  sys- 
tems of  England,  France,  and  Germany — should  be  studied.  Every 
college  or  university  offering  opportunities  for  professional  study 
ought  also  to  provide  special  opportunities  for  teachers  already  in 
service  who  seek  assistance  and  guidance  in  the  study  of  their  pro- 
fession, or  who  wish  to  make  a  special  study  of  particular  problems. 
Such  opportunities  many  teachers  will  find  in  the  work  already 
described  ;  but  for  the  most  advanced  students  a  pedagogical  semi- 
nary should  be  provided.  In  this  seminary,  topics  for  prolonged 
study  should  be  suggested  by  the  instructor  or  proposed  by  the 
students.  Each  man  having  selected  his  topic,  the  work  should 
proceed  by  the  usual  methods  of  university  study  ;  namely,  inves- 
tigation and  discusaion. 

A  model  school,  which  in  the  construction  and  complete  equip- 
ment of  its  building  should  exemplify  the  best  modern  ideals,  which 
should  comprise  all  the  grades  from  the  kindergarten  through  the 
secondary  school,  and  which  in  its  organization  and  work  "  should 
represent  the  finest  results  of  the  teaching  art,"  would  be  an  inval- 
uable aid  to  the  student  of  education  and  teaching.  Such  a  school 
should  exhibit  in  itself  all  the  best  features  of  all  the  schools  which 
the  students  have  studied.  It  could  never  render  unnecessary  the 
comparative  study  of  schools  and  school  systems  described  above  : 
for  the  students  need  breadth  of  view  ;  they  need  to  know  what  is 
as  well  as  ivhat  should  be,  and  what  the  conditions  are  under  which 
they  will  have  to  attempt  the  realization  of  their  ideals.  This 
breadth  of  view  and  this  knowledge  can  be  obtained  only  by  study- 
ing the  schools  as  they  are.  Such  a  model  school  should  be  placed 
in  charge  of  the  professor  of  education  and  teaching,  and  it  should 
be  independent  of  all  control  except  that  of  the  college  or  university 
authorities. 


ON  TRAINING  OF  TEACHERS.  I49 

Such  a  school  would  be  a  model  school  in  the  proper  sense  of  the 
term  ;  it  would  not  be  used  by  the  students  for  "  practice-teaching." 
No  school  can  be,  at  the  same  time,  both  a  model  school  and  a  prac- 
tice or  experimental  school.  There  can  be  no  satisfactory  practice- 
teaching — i.  e.,  no  teaching  that  is  really  worthy  of  being  considered 
"  apprenticeship  teaching" — unless  the  students  carry,  for  a  sufificient 
time,  the  full  responsibilities  of  the  regular  teachers.  But  in  that 
case  the  school  would  manifestly  not  be  a  model  school.  A  school 
in  which  much  of  the  teaching  was  done  by  inexperienced  teachers 
could  not  exemplify  the  highest  teaching  art. 

Concerning  the  utility  of  practice  teaching,  in  general,  except 
that  of  an  enlightened  beginner  carrying  the  full  responsibility  of 
a  teacher  in  charge  of  his  first  school  or  class,  I  have  grave  doubts. 
I  am  inclined  to  believe  that  the  best  preparation  for  shortening 
and  rationalizing  the  inevitable  period  of  experimentation  which 
every  inexperienced  teacher  undergoes  is  the  scholarship,  profes- 
sional insight,  and  enthusiasm,  provided  for  in  the  training  described 
above,  without  the  attempt  to  force  experience  in  teaching — an 
attempt  that  is  almost  sure  to  check  enthusiasm  and  spontaneity, 
and  may  substitute  mechanism  for  life  in  the  teacher's  work. 

Provision  for  such  professional  training  as  has  been  described 
should  be  made  by  every  college  and  university  the  location  of 
which  renders  the  actual  study  of  many  schools  possible.  When 
the  location  is  unfavorable  to  such  study,  so  much  of  this  training 
should  be  provided  as  can  be  profitably  undertaken.  College  men 
who  look  forward  to  teaching  in  secondary  schools  will  never  seek 
professional  training  at  the  existing  normal  schools,  and  it  is  not 
desirable  that  they  should.  The  difference  between  the  scholarship 
and  developed  intellectual  power  of  a  normal-school  student  and 
of  a  college  man  is  too  great  to  make  it  possible  or  desirable  to 
give  the  college  student  his  professional  training  at  the  normal 
school  ;  and  the  college  education  is  a  fundamental  requisite  for 
the  secondary-school  teacher.  The  professional  training  of  the 
college  man  must,  therefore,  be  provided  by  the  colleges  and  univer- 
sities, if  at  all.  The  necessity  for  such  training  is  no  longer  in 
dispute.  It  only  remains  for  principals  of  secondary  schools  and 
superintendents  now  in  service  to  demand  professional  training 
for  all  teachers,  and  to  induce  their  school  committees  to  re-enforce 
this  demand  by  making  it  difficult  for  any  inexperienced  teacher, 
who  has  not  had  professional  training,  to  find  employment,  in 
order  to  cause  the  colleges  and  universities  of  the  country  to  make 
suitable  provision  for  such  training.  The  duty  of  principals  and 
superintendents  to  the  profession  is  plain.     Will  they  do  it  ? 

B.  A.  Hinsdale,  Professor  of  Pedagogy, 

University  of  Michigan,  Ann  Arbor,  Mich. 

I.  If  normal  schools  or  training  schools  were  organized  on  the 
proper  br.sis,  as  sometimes  they  are,  I  should  say  the  minimum  age 
ought  not  to  be  less  than  eighteen  or  nineteen.  That  is  the  age  at 
which  the  average  high-school  pupil  finishes  his  high-school  course. 


150  APPENDIX. 

2.  With  the  qualification  inserted  in  the  first  answer,  I  should  say- 
that  requirement  for  scholarship  in  all  the  branches  named  should 
be  equal  to  the  standard  attained  by  a  good  high-school  course. 

3.  High-school  diplomas  may  be  properly  accepted,  provided  the 
normal-school  authorities  have  examined  the  work  done  in  tht  high 
school,  including  its  course  of  study,  and  have  found  everything 
satisfactory.  Four  years  should  be  insisted  upon  in  all  cases  where 
the  elementary  grades  are  only  eight  in  number.  Pupils  coming 
from  inferior  high  schools,  or  from  high  schools  with  which  the 
normal  school  is  not  in  touch,  should  be  examined. 

4.  If  a  preparation  equal  to  that  described  above  can  be  secured, 
then  a  two  or  three  years'  course  would  be  sufficient,  say  two  years 
upon  the  average  ;  but  if  the  normal  school  is  based  on  the  elemen- 
tary school,  as  is  so  often  the  case  to  a  great  extent,  then  the  normal- 
school  course  should  be  six  years,  as  it  is  in  Germany. 

5.  From  one-half  to  two-thirds  of  the  time  should  be  devoted  to 
study  and  discussion  of  the  principles  of  education,  etc.  ;  the  re- 
mainder to  practice  and  to  criticism  of  practice. 

6.  A  text-book  in  psychology  as  extensive  as  Baldwin's  elemen- 
tary book  (J.  M.  Baldwin)  should  be  thoroughly  digested.  Pupils 
should  prepare  and  recite  lessons,  and  the  whole  subject  should  be 
illustrated  by  the  teacher  or  professor. 

7.  Along  all  the  great  lines  of  child  development,  physical,  men- 
tal, moral.  By  mental  I  mean  not  merely  intellectual,  but  the  whole 
range  and  compass  of  mental  activity. 

8.  I  have  no  expert  opinion  on  this  subject. 

9.  Principles  of  education  must  be  deduced  from  the  study  of 
the  mind,  and  from  the  study  of  the  world,  or  knowledge,  brought 
inio  relation.  I  mean  knowledge  in  the  objective  sense.  It  is  not 
sufficient  to  study  psychology  abstractly.  The  relation  of  various 
kinds  of  subject-matter  to  the  mind  must  also  be  included.  The 
method  may  be  inductive  or  deductive,  or  a  combination  of  both. 
The  latter  is  no  doubt  preferable.  Sometimes  principles  may  be 
deduced  from  facts,  but  it  is  equally  permissible  to  state  the  prin- 
ciples and  then  confirm  and  illustrate  them  by  facts. 

10.  The  main  lines  of  educational  thought  and  practice  should 
be  followed,  particularly  since  the  Renaissance.  If  the  subject  is 
followed  intelligently,  it  will  have  large  culture  value.  It  may  be 
made  practical  by  criticism  of  false  or  imperfect  views,  and  of 
vicious  or  faulty  methods  of  teaching  and  government  and  of 
school  administration. 

11.  All  of  the  four  methods  suggested  should  be  combined  in 
judicious  measure.     Stress  should  be  laid  upon  the  practical  side. 

12.  I  think  the  plan  of  having  a  model-teacher  placed  over  every 
two  classes  a  very  good  one.  I  do  not  think  the  plan  of  a  model- 
teacher  for  each  class  desirable  ;  it  tends  to  beget  dependence  and 
weakness.  On  the  other  hand,  if  there  is  only  one  critic-teacher 
for  several  pupil-teachers,  the  oversight  is  likely  to  be  insufficient. 

13.  I  am  hardly  prepared  to  suggest  a  plan.  It  scarcely  seems 
to  me  a  "  plan  "  can  cut  much  of  a  figure.  What  is  wanted  is  intel- 
ligent observation,  and  that  can  hardly  be  reduced  to  an  art. 


ON   TRAINING  OF  TEACHERS.  I5I 

14.  Some  suggestions  can  be  made  to  the  pupil-teacher  while 
the  work  is  going  on,  if  they  are  made  in  the  right  way  ;  but  most 
of  the  criticism  must  be  made  after  the  school  is  dismissed.  It  may 
be  either  individual  or  collective,  as  the  circumstances  determine. 
If  the  same  faults  have  been  observed  in  two  or  more  pupil-teachers, 
those  faults  may  be  discussed  in  their  common  presence  ;  but  much 
individual  work  of  this  sort  will  be  found  necessary. 

15.  I  should  not  favor  the  employment  of  both  critic-teachers 
and  model-teachers.  The  model-teachers  should  be  critic-teachers. 
The  teacher  of  methodology  should  also  exercise  particular  over- 
sight, and  criticism  should  be  limited  to  the  teacher  of  methodology 
and  the  model-teacher.  The.  pupil-teacher's  responsibility  should 
not  go  beyond  two  persons.  If  critic-teachers  are  employed,  and 
not  model-teachers,  the  answer  to  the  question  is,  of  course,  obvious. 

16.  If  normal  schools  could  be  organized  on  what  I  conceive  to 
be  an  ideal  basis,  academical  work,  properly  so  called,  would  be 
excluded.  The  only  subjects  in  which  formal  instruction  would 
be  given  would  be  the  principles,  methods,  and  history  of  educa- 
tion, and  in  the  sciences  out  of  which  principles  and  methods  of 
education  grow.  Still  I  am  inclined  to  think  that  it  might  be  well 
to  provide  in  a  normal  school  for  a  certain  amount  of  review  work 
in  academical  studies,  for  the  purpose  of  keeping  the  mind  of  the 
pupil  fresh  and  bright  in  these  subjects.  It  is  important  to  keep 
the  minds  of  such  pupils  facing  outward  toward  the  great  kingdom 
of  knowledge.  I  have  spoken  of  what  I  conceive  to  be  the  ideal. 
Few,  or  none,  of  our  normal  schools  are  ideal,  however,  in  my 
judgment.  No  doubt  it  would  be  found  impossible  at  present  to 
carry  out  my  ideas.  These  ideas  are  not  carried  out  in  the  normal 
schools  of  Germany.  Most  of  the  work  done  in  the  six-years' 
courses  in  the  normal  schools  of  Saxony,  for  example,  is  done  in 
studies,  and  not  on  proper  professional  lines.  For  the  time  being, 
we  are  no  doubt  compelled  to  accept  a  large  amount  of  academical 
work  in  the  normal  schools  ;  but  I  think  it  is  desirable  steadily  to 
raise  the  standard  of  requirement,  and  steadily  to  increase  the 
amount  of  professional  work. 

17.  I  know  of  no  particular  tests  of  efficiency  that  can  be  applied 
to  such  case.  The  tests  are  obviously  the  same  as  in  a  school 
taught  by  a  regular  teacher,  but  somewhat  differently  applied.  The 
factor  of  oversight  will,  of  course,  be  far  more  prominent.  The 
critic-teacher,  or  model-teacher,  and  the  teacher  of  methodology, 
will  naturally  look  after  such  teachers  much  more  closely  than  the 
superintendent  or  supervisor  will  look  after  the  ordinary  teacher  ; 
still,  the  final  test  of  efficiency  must  be  the  answer  to  the  question, 
whether  the  child  learns. 

18.  The  diploma  of  a  normal  or  training  school  should  stand  for 
a  certain  amount  of  scholarship,  directly  or  indirectly  ;  for  a  cer- 
tain amount  of  professional  study ;  and  for  a  certain  amount  of 
training.  As  to  general  scholarship,  the  diploma  would  testify 
directly  when  a  large  amount  of  academical  work  is  done  in  the 
school  ;  indirectly  when  the  normal  school  looks  to  the  high  school 
or  academy  for  general  preparation. 


152  APPENDIX. 

I  dismiss  the  subject  with  observing  that  my  answers  have  respect 
to  a  general  ideal  much  more  directly  than  to  the  state  of  things 
now  existing.  If  I  were  the  principal  of  a  normal  school,  the 
practical  problem  for  me  to  solve  would  be  to  apply  the  general 
ideas  that  I  have  expressed  to  a  particular  situation. 

J.  L.  HOLLOWAY,  Superintendent  of  Schools,  Fort  Smith,  Ark. 

4.  If  the  word  be  confined  chiefly  to  professional  training,  the 
minimum  length  of  the  course  should  be  two  years.  When  it  is 
necessary  to  supplement  to  a  larger  extent  the  professional  with 
scholastic  instruction,  the  usual  four-years'  course  seems  to  be  the 
most  practical. 

5.  As  a  rule,  the  lines  should  be  about  equally  divided.  The  nat- 
ural endowment  and  tact  of  the  individual  is  a  determining  factor. 
Many  have  the  faculty  of  imparting  knowledge  and  are  born  to  lead  ; 
others  are  good  theorizers,  but  poor  tacticians  and  executors.  The 
normal-school  teachers  have  the  same  problems  to  handle  that 
confront  the  public-school  teachers  daily;  viz.,  individual  aptitudes, 
varying  temperaments,  and  other  elements  of  the  personal  equation. 

7.  The  activity  or  torpor  of  certain  mental  or  moral  faculties 
under  the  excitant  of  specific  instruction  or  example,  the  responsive- 
ness of  children  to  certain  methods  of  procedure  in  their  daily 
training,  and  the  bearing  of  temperament  as  related  to  teaching  and 
discipline,  constitute  a  field  of  original  research  at  once  interesting 
and  valuable.  Indeed,  I  believe  until  such  data  are  procured  and 
thoroughly  assimilated  in  the  professional  life  of  teachers,  teaching 
will  remain  as  it  largely  is  to-day  and  ever  has  been — a  species  of 
empiricism. 

14.  This  will  depend  largely  upon  the  disposition  of  the  pupil- 
teacher.  A  good  plan  is  to  require  observing  pupils  to  draught 
criticisms,  which  are  first  inspected  by  the  model-teacher,  and  to 
submit  only  such  as  will  be  most  helpful  to  pupil-teachers  and  the 
class.  In  other  cases  it  is  well  to  have  a  running  discussion  take 
place  immediately  following  the  dismissal  of  the  class  in  the  model 
school. 

Ellen  Hyde,  Framingham,  Mass. 

3.  I  should  prefer  to  accept  the  diploma  and  throw  all  responsi- 
bility for  scholarship  on  the  preparatory  schools. 

6.  Enough  to  teach  the  teacher  to  examine  his  own  mental  states 
and  processes,  and  to  observe  with  interest  and  some  degree  of 
insight  the  mental  exercises  and  growth  of  children.  Empirically 
by  introspection  and  observation  and  as  a  science  of  mind,  not  as 
mere  neurology. 

12.  A  school  for  practice  cannot  be  a  "model"  school.  In  a 
practice  school  long  experience  leads  me  to  the  belief  that  in  order 
to  do  justice  to  both  pupils  and  pupil-teachers,  and  to  keep  the 
school  efficient,  there  must  be  a  responsible  permanent  teacher  in 
every  room,  whose  principal  work  and  care  shall  be  to  keep  the 


ON  TRAINING  OF  TEACHERS.  1 53 

school  up  to  grade,  and  the  p-jpils  in  right  mental  and  moral  condi- 
tion. In  addition  there  must  be  a  sufficient  number  of  critic-teach- 
ers to  give  careful  observation  and  criticism  to  the  work  of  the 
pupil-teachers. 

George  H.  Martin,  Lynn,  Mass. 

7.  During  the  period  of  training,  the  students  should  use  chiefly 
the  results  of  other  people's  observations  of  children.  But  they 
should  be  taught  the  most  profitable  lines  of  child-study  and  the 
best  methods  of  pursuing  them. 

12.  In  my  judgment,  a  model  school  and  a  practice  school  should 
be  two  distinct  institutions,  with  different  functions  and  a  different 
organization.  In  the  model  school  each  class  should  have  its  own 
teacher,  whose  work  should  never  be  interrupted  by  apprentices. 
In  the  practice  school  the  pupil-teachers  should  have  full  charge  of 
classes  for  a  limited  time,  under  the  supervision  of  experts. 

F.  F.  MURDOCK,  Bridgewater  Normal  School. 

6.  Psychology  should  appear  twice  as  a  distinct  subject  in  the 
normal  programme. 

(i)  At  the  beginning,  the  mental  activities  should  be  observed 
sufficiently  to  enable  students  thereafter  to  recognize  the  activities 
employed  in  gaining  knowledge  while  acquiring  the  knowledge. 

(2)  At  the  end  of  the  course,  to  derive  (?)  the  data  for  the  science 
of  psychology,  or  so  much  of  it  as  is  necessary  for  intelligent  and 
appreciative  application  of  fundamental  psychological  and  peda- 
gogical truths. 

The  knowledge  should  be  acquired  under  skilled  direction  :  {a) 
by  observation  of  self-activity,  of  activities  of  other  adults,  of  child- 
activity  ;  {b)  by  directed  reading  and  discussion. 

10.  History  of  education — to  be  worked  out  on  the  "laboratory" 
plan,  the  range  of  books  and  passages  being  to  a  considerable  (two- 
thirds)  degree  indicated  by  the  instructor.  Afterward  a  brief  com- 
pendium should  be  used  as  a  means  of  review  if  desired.. 

So  much  should  be  learned  as  would  enable  students  to  know  and 
appreciate  the  valuable  addition  which  each  educator  studied  gave 
to  education,  thereby  increasing  zeal  and  willingness  to  learn  and 
profit  by  the  experience  of  the  past  ;  i.e.^  to  use  all  the  good  thus 
far  acquired  in  educational  '^wisdom." 

Francis  W.  Parker,  Principal  of  the  Cook  County  Normal 
School,  Englewood,  111. 

1.  Eighteen  years  of  age,  with  exceptions. 

2.  It  is  impossible  to  state  requirements  for  scholarship  to  enter 
such  a  course,  in  terms  of  quantity  in  the  studies  named  from  {a)  to 
(/),  inclusive.  A  good  knowledge  of  all  these  subjects,  with  the 
exception  of  foreign  languages  (/),  is  necessary,  and  should  include 
a  very  important  mode  of  expression — writing,  both  -apoiL^aper 

( UNIVERSITY  ' 


1 54  APPENDIX. 

and  the  blackboard.     The  requirements,  however,  should  consist 
of  love,  system,  ability,  and  persistence  in  educative  work.'    I  look 
upon  the  developed  ability  to  observe,  to  experiment,  to   investi- 
gate, and  to  reason,  as  the  essential  thing,  and   not  the  number  of 
studies  or  amount  of  ground  gone  over.     If,  however,  the  pupil  has 
learned  to  use  mental  power  economically  in  each  and  all  the  sub- 
jects  named,  the  basis   for   personal  work   would   be   very  much 
stronger.     There  can  be  no  marking,  measuring,  or  weighing  of 
quantity  learned.     My  experience  is  that  most  pupils  who  enter  ' 
from  colleges  and  high  schools  into  the   professional  training  class  \ 
fail  in  the  essential  knowledge  of  the  subjects  they  have  already  j 
studied,  and  in  habits  and  methods  of  study.  \ 

3.  Requirements  for  admission  to  normal  schools  depend  upon  | 
circumstances.  Pupils  presenting  a  diploma  certifying  to  a  four-  \ 
years'  course  in  a  good  high  school  should  be  admitted  without  ' 
examination.  High  schools  should  be  examined  upon  their  peda-  ' 
gogical  work,  and  put  upon  the  list  of  accredited  schools  if  the 
teaching  and  training  is  satisfactory.  \ 

4.  Should  be  at  least  two  years. 

5.  Impossible  to  answer  the  question.     All  the  study  in  the  pro-  j 
fessional  training  school  should  consist  in  the  study  of  principles  ! 
and  methods  of  education,  and  adaptation  of  subject-matter  ;  should 
be,  in  fact,  a  direct  preparation  for  the  immediate  practice  of  teach-  i 
ing.     Pupils,  when  they  enter  a  professional  training  school,  should 
have  their  attention  turned  at  once  toward  the  work  they  are  to  do, 
and  every  step  of  the  work  in  psychology,  principles,  methods,  and  i 
the  acquisition   of    knowledge,   should  be  aimed  at  the  practice.  I 
Pupils  should  be  in,  or  should  join   in,  classes  of  practice  at  least 
one  hour  each  day  during  the  whole  course. 

6.  That  psychology  which  is  necessary  to  the  understanding  of 
the  principles  of  education  should  be  studied  inductively. 

7.  Observation  of  children,  psychologically  and  anthropologi- 
cally, should  be  made  a  principal  factor  in  the  study  of  psychology. 
If  by  observation  is  meant  the  observing  of  lessons  given  by  prac- 
tice-teachers, I  should  say  it  is  of  little  or  no  value. 

8.  1  have  not  sufficient  expert  knowledge  to  answer  the  ques- 
tion. 

9.  All  the  principles  of  education  should  be  derived  directly  from 
the  laws  of.  the  mind.  To  answer  the  question  "  In  what  way  ?  "  is 
to  present  the  whole  subject  of  the  science  of  education. 

10.  The  main  lines  of  the  history  of  education  should  be  studied  ; 
the  lives  of  great  teachers  and  reformers  in  education  should  be 
known,  for  instance,  Socrates,  Comenius,  Ratisch,  Franke,  Girard, 
Pestalozzi,  Diesterweg,  Herbart,  Froebel.  The  history  of  educa- 
tion should  be  turned  upon  the  study  of  the  principles  and  methods 
of  education. 

11.  Refer  you  to  plan  given  in  report  (sent  herewith)  of  the 
Cook  County  Normal  School. 

12.  There  should  be  a  regular  teacher  placed  over  each  class  or 
room.  It  is  a  great  mistake  to  have  a  model-teacher,  so  called, 
placed  over  two  rooms.     All  the  practice-teaching  should  be  under 


i 


ON   TRAINING  OF  TEACHERS.  1 55 

the  immediate  direction  of  a  critic-teacher  or  regular  teacher  of  a 
room,  and  this  teaching  should  be  supervised  by  the  special  teachers 
in  the  different  departments  of  the  normal  school. 

13.  The  whole  corps  of  teachers  of  a  normal  school  should 
devote  themselves  to  the  careful  observation  of  the  work  of  pupil- 
teachers  ;  I  should  prefer  that  term  to  fnodeZ-teachers. 

14.  All  criticism  should  be  private  and  personal.  The  critic- 
teachers  and  special  teachers  should  observe  with  the  greatest  care 
the  work  of  the  pupil-teachers,  and  ascertain  their  main  faults,  and 
the  criticism  should  be  made  in  order  to  direct  the  attention  of  the 
pupil-teachers  to  their  own  mistakes,  and  how  they  can  be  obviated. 

15.  Criticism  should  be  made  by  all  the  teachers  in  the  normal 
school. 

t6.  In  a  strictly  professional  training  school,  a  school  parallel 
with  a  school  of  medicine  or  psychology,  there  should  be  no  strictly 
academic  work. 

17.  A  pupil-teacher's  efficiency  should  be  tested  by  the  ability  to 
govern,  teach,  and  train  classes  of  pupils. 

18.  Diplomas  should  be  granted  upon  the  ability  of  a  pupil  to 
teach  school. 

Sarah  E.  Scott  and  Emma  L.  Johnston, 

Training  School  for  Teachers,  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 

2.  The  scholarship  resulting  from  a  twelve-years*  course  in  Eng- 
lish, mathematics,  natural  science,  physical  culture,  music,  drawing  ; 
an  eight-years'  course  in  history  ;  a  two-years'  course  in  Latin, 
and  a  one-year's  course  (at  least)  in  a  modern  foreign  language. 

7.  At  first  the  child-mind  should  be  studied  from  books  and  by 
means  of  lectures.  When  pupil-teachers  have  learned  the  formulae 
for  observation  work,  they  may  be  given  opportunity  to  record 
and  report  observations  of  particular  children. 

8.  The  sense-organs,  especially  those  of  sight  and  hearing,  should 
be  tested.  This  is  done  in  order  to  seat  children  properly,  to 
regulate  the  light,  the  blackboard  work,  and  the  amount  of  indi- 
vidual attention  bestowed.  The  ordinary  letter-cards  and  the  voice 
may  be  used  for  these  tests.  The  elaborate  apparatus  used  in 
some  universities  is  out  of  place  in  the  ordinary  city  training 
school. 

9.  During  the  first  half-year  of  the  course,  the  students  should 
be  led  to  deduce  the  principles  of  pedagogy  from  the  truths  of 
psychology.  During  the  next  year  the  students  should  be  taught 
to  apply  these  principles  to  methods  of  teaching.  During  the 
fourth  half-year,  pupil-teachers  should  use  these  principles  as  the 
basis  for  a  criticism  of  the  lessons  observed  or  given  by  them  in 
the  practice  department. 

II.  By  writing  outlines  before  lessons  are  given,  and  after  prin- 
ciples have  been  discussed.  By  giving  certain  lessons  to  fellow 
pupil-teachers  for  the  purpose  of  awakening  discussion  and  criti- 
cism— the  lessons  being  those  intended  for  the  older  children. 
Lectures  may  prepare  the  way  for  these  outlines  of  lessons,  and 


6  APPENDIX. 


the  outlines  may  furnish  texts  for  other  lectures.  Books  an^ 
periodicals  devoted  to  methods  may  be  used  after  pupil-teacher^ 
have  been  led  to  devise  methods  of  their  own. 

17.  Until  a  pupil-teacher  has  shown  by  her  responsiveness  in  the 
daily  lessons  that  she  possesses  the  power  to  comprehend  the  prin- 
ciples of  pedagogy,  she  should  not  be  allowed  to  outline  lessong 
for  children.  Until  she  can  write  a  good  outline  of  a  lesson,  she 
should  not  be  allowed  to  give  the  lesson.  Until  she  can  give  the 
lessons  previously  outlined  by  her  and  criticised  by  her  teachers, 
in  such  a  way  as  to  hold  the  attention  of  a  class  of  children,  shej 
should  not  receive  a  diploma.  j 


I 
1 


APPENDIX   II 

OPINIONS  SUBMITTED  TO  THE  SUB-COxMMITTEE  ON  THE 
CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES  IN  ELEMENTARY  EDUCA- 
TION 

The  following  are  the  questions  in  answer  to  which  the 
opinions  were  written  : 

1.  Should  the  elementary  course  be  eight  years,  and  the 
secondary  course  four  years,  as  at  present  ?  Or,  should  the 
elementary  course  be  six  years  and  the  secondary  course  six 
years  ? 

2.  Has  each  of  the  grammar-school  studies  —  language 
(including  reading,  spelling,  grammar,  composition),  mathe- 
matics (arithmetic,  algebra,  plane  geometry),  geography,  his- 
tory, natural  science  (botany,  zoology,  mineralogy),  penman- 
ship, drawing,  etc. — a  distinct  pedagogical  value?  If  so,  what 
is  it? 

3.  Should  other  subjects  than  those  enumerated  in  the 
second  question,  such  as  manual  training  (including  sloyd, 
sewing,  and  cooking),  physical  culture,  physics,  music,  physi- 
ology (including  the  effects  of  stimulants  and  narcotics),  Latin, 
or  a  modern  language,  be  taught  in  the  elementary-school 
course?     If  so,  why? 

4.  Should  the  sequence  of  topics  be  determined  by  the 
logical  development  of  the  subject,  or  by  the  child's  power  to 
apperceive  new  ideas?  Or,  to  any  extent  by  the  evolutionary 
steps  manifested  by  the  race?  If  so,  by  the  evolution  of  the 
race  to  which  the  child  belongs,  or  that  of  the  human  race? 

5.  What  should  be  the  purpose  of  attempting  a  close  corre- 
lation of  studies? 

(a)  To  prevent  duplication,  eliminate  non-essentials,  and  save 

time  and  effgrt  ? 
(d)   To  develop  the  apperceiving  power  of  the  mind  ? 
(c)   To  develop  character, — a  purely  ethical  purpose  ? 

157 


158  APPENDIX. 

6.  Is  it  possible  on  any  basis  to  correlate  or  unify  all  the^ 
studies  of  the  elementary  school? 

7.  If  not,  may  they  be  divided  into  two  or  more  groups,! 
those  of  each  group  being  correlated  ? 

8.  Is  there  any  way  of  correlating  the  results  of  work  in  all 
the  groups  ? 

9.  What  should  be  the  length  of  recitation  periods  in  each 
year  of  the  elementary-school  course?  What  considerations 
should  determine  the  length? 

10.  In  what  year  of  the  course  should  each  of  the  subjects 
mentioned  in  questions  2  and  3  be  introduced,  if  introduced 
at  all? 

11.  In  making  a  programme,  should  time  be  assigned  for 
each  subject,  or  only  for  the  groups  of  subjects  suggested  in 
question  7? 

12.  How  many  hours  a  week  for  how  many  years  should  be 
devoted  to  each  subject,  or  each  group  of  subjects? 

13.  What  topics  may  be  covered  in  each  subject,  or  each 
group  of  subjects? 

14.  Should  any  subject,  or  group  of  subjects,  be  treated* 
differently  for  pupils  who  leave  school  at  twelve,  thirteen,  or 
fourteen  years  of  age,  and  for  those  who  are  going  to  a  high 
school  ? 

15.  Can  any  description  be  given  of  the  best  method  of 
teaching  each  subject,  or  group  of  subjects,  throughout  the 
school  course  ? 

16.  What  considerations  should  determine  the  point  at 
which  the  specialization  of  the  work  of  teachers  should  begin? 

17.  On  what  principle  should  the  promotion  of  pupils  from 
grade  to  grade  be  determined  ?  Who  should  make  the  deter- 
mination ? 


i 


ON   CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  1 59 


Emily  G.  Bridgham,  Grammar  School  No.  3,  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 

9.  The  attention  of  young  children  cannot  be  long  sustained 
upon  one  subject,  and  primary  instruction  should  be  presented  in 
smallest  details.  The  length  of  period  of  recitation  cannot  be 
exactly  prescribed,  as  the  lesson  should  cease  whenever  interest 
flags.  No  child  in  elementary  school  can,  with  profit,  be  kept 
longer  than  forty  minutes  upon  a  memory,  or  verbal,  recitation  ;  in 
the  primary  grades,  twenty  minutes  should  be  the  maximum. 

Considerations  which  determine  length  of  recitation  should  be  : 
I.  Interest  in  the  subject  ;  2.  The  relation  of  the  subject  to  other 
topics  of  the  day  ;  3.  The  relation  the  portion  of  lesson  bears  to 
portion  assigned  the  class. 

10.  The  introduction  of  any  study  into  school  course  should  be 
guided  by  its  relation  to  child's  present  experience  and  lines  of 
interest.  Too  many  studies  are  advocated  because  of  their  sup- 
posed practical  usefulness  in  after  life. 

When  the  broadest  view  of  a  teacher's  work  becomes  more  nearly 
universal,  and  when  very  much  less  teaching  is  done  for  examina- 
tion, there  will  be  no  danger  in  crowding  the  curriculum  of  infant 
years.  "  Children  are  not  worked  to  death,"  says  President  "Eliot, 
"but  they  are  bored  to  death."  It  is  better  to  give  many  subjects 
of  many-sided  interests  to  children,  rather  than  dole  out  to  them  a 
few  m^atters  for  the  sake  of  thoroughness  in  them.  The  powers  of 
observation,  which  children  possess  in  such  keenness,  should  have 
abundance  of  material  for  their  fostering.  Children  may,  at  first, 
be  permitted  to  flit  from  flower  to  flower,  before  settling  down  to 
thorough  detail ;  for  thoroughness  requires  a  concentration  of 
mind  and  a  tenacity  of  purpose  not  to  be  expected  of  the  young. 

Language  (except  grammar  and  composition) ist  year. 

(Synthesis  of  sentences  as  soon  as  permissible.) 

Composition 5th  year. 

Technical  grammar 7th  year. 

Arithmetic ist  year. 

(Number  first  presented  in  concrete,  as  soon  as  pos- 
sible taken  in  abstract.  Examples  requiring  maturity 
of  thought  omitted  in  grades  below  high  school.) 

Algebra.     Taken  slowly  ;  equation  made  prominent 7th  year. 

Geometry  (inventional) last  half  of  7th  year. 

(With  tivie  given  for  inventive  genius  to  bud.) 
History 5th  year. 

(Narrative  from  general  history,  leading  to  biogra- 
phy and  American  history.) 
Nature  studies 4th  year. 

(Observation-work  ist  year.) 

Penmanship  and  drawing  and  music ist  year. 

Physiology 7th  year. 

Physics '. 6th  year. 

Physical  culture ist  year. 

17.  If  success  of  a  teacher  were  not  so  frequently  based  upon 
results  of  her  class  at  final  tests,  thus  rendering  her  loath  to  part 


l60  APPENDIX. 

with  creditable  pupils,  promotions  should  take  place  whenever  child 
is  able  to  do  work  of  succeeding  class. 

Pupils  who  fail  to  do  the  work  of  a  grade  in  the  time  allottee^ 
would  be  greatly  benefited  by  reviewing  the  work  with  anotheil 
teacher,  and  perhaps  with  different  books.  The  establishment  of 
duplicate  grades,  at  certain  points,  would  prove  advantageous. 

Class  teachers  are  not  infallible  in  the  estimate  of  their  owiil 
work  ;  therefore,  as  a  requirement  for  promotion,  it  seems  advis-J 
able  to  use,  in  addition  to  teacher's  estimate,  a  written  test  made 
by  some  one  else.  . 

Examinations  have  been  greatly  abused,  it  is  true  ;  but  this 
abuse  has  arisen  from  lack  of  pedagogical  skill,  for  these  crucial' 
tests  need  not  always  occur  at  close  of  term,  nor  need  they  ever 
be  held  at  announced  or  stated  periods.  i 

A  written  examination  along  same  lines  which  teacher  has  pursuedjf 
and  conducted  by  a  principal  whose  supervision  has  been  a  guid- 
ance and  an  inspiration,  would,  in  my  judgment,  result  in  improved 
material  for  advanced  classes. 


W.  M.  Bryant,  High  School,  St.  Louis,  Mo. 

1.  Elementary  course  ought  to  remain  eight  years,  as  at  present, 
especially  on  account  of  difference  in  modes  of  discipline. 

2.  I  consider  the  pedagogical  value  of  the  grammar-school  studies 
to  be  as  follows  : 

(i)  Language  is  the  objective  form  of  thought  Concepts  can 
be  matured  only  through  mastery  of  names  as  objective  forms  of 
concepts.  Spellitig  (always  written,  of  course),  in  connection  with 
elementary  etymology,  aids  in  rendering  concepts  precise  through 
the  more  precise  apprehension  of  their  objective  forms.  Gram7iiar 
classifies  the  mind  through  the  whole  range  of  logical  forms; 
"terms"  (as  objective  forms  of  concepts)  being  specially  defined 
through  etymology,  "  propositions  "  through  the  study  of  simple 
sentences,  and  the  *'  syllogism  "  (informally)  through  the  study  of 
complex  and  compound  sentences.  In  etymology,  the  child  is 
familiarized  with  the  elements  of  thought  (/.  ^.,  concepts).  In  syntax, 
he  is  exercised  in  the  analysis  and  synthesis  of  the  actual  forms  of 
explicit  thought,  which  consist,  first,  in  the  comparison  of  concepts, 
and,  second,  in  the  comparison  of  judgments  (through  their  object- 
ive forms,  viz.,  propositions).  Reading  is  the  practicing  of  the  critical 
power  thus  trained,  while  composition  is  (predominantly)  the  prac- 
ticing of  the  constructive  power  thus  developed. 

(2)  Mathematics  has  the  pedagogical  value  of  strengthening  the 
demand  for  precision  of  forms.  It  insists  upon  perfection  of 
results,  refuses  credit  for  approximate  results.  In  arithmetic  and 
algebra  it  compels  attention  to  the  relations  involved,  through 
extreme  abstractness  of  the  symbols  employed.  The  study  of 
geometry  disciplines  the  imagination  to  rigid  exactness  of  form. 
It  disciplines  the  understanding  to  the  recognition  of  identities  in; 
types  of  forms.     The  limitation  of  mathematics  is  that  it  emphasizes* 


ON   CORRELATION    OF   STUDIES.  l6l 

identity  to  the  exclusion  of  differences,  rather  than  identity  as  in 
the  midst  of  differences  ;  that  is,  it  subordinates  difference  to  iden- 
tity instead  of  co-ordinatin^a^  it  with  identity.  It  even  attempts  to 
eHminate  the  difference  between  difference  and  identity  ;  as  when 
it  atomizes  the  curve,  and  thus  sees  in  it  only  a  succession  of 
"  straight  lines,"  these  being  conceived  to  be  such  only  when 
"infinitely  short,"  /.  ^.,  only  when  they  have  ceased  to  have  dimen- 
sions, i.e.,  when  they  have  ceased  to  be  lines  at  all.  It  deals,  in 
fact,  only  with  extensive  quantity,  and  ignores  intensive  quantity 
in  its  essential  character  of  quality.  Mathematics  thus  proves 
inadequate  as  a  means  to  discipline  the  judgment.  This,  indeed 
is  no  "  fault  "  of  mathematics,  but  only  its  inherent  limitation. 

(3)  The  pedagogical  lack  on  the  part  of  mathematics  is  supplied, 
in  simple  form,  by  the  natural  scieiices.  In  its  entire  range  physics 
is,  in  large  measure,  nothing  else  than  applied  mathematics,  and 
hence  extends  discipline  in  intellectual  habits  of  precision.  But, 
also,  as  dealing  with  concrete  phenomena,  it  serves  to  exercise  both 
understanding  and  judgment :  the  former  in  recognizing  identities 
(classifying  modes  of  energy,  the  special  forms  involved  in  applied 
mechanics,  etc.);  the  latter  in  estimating  differences  (as  of  fibers 
of  materials,  various  phases  of  strain,  effects  in  change  of  form  of 
mechanism,  as  in  levers). 

Yet  within  the  sphere  of  the  grammar  school  but  little  of  expli- 
citly quantitative  physics  can  be  made  use  of.  Only  the  descriptive 
phases  illustrated  by  actual  experiment  and  embodying  in  the  sim- 
plest way  the  fundamental  principles  of  the  science  can  be  success- 
fully dealt  with  by  pupils  under  fourteen  years  of  age.  For  such 
pupils  (those  of  last  four  years  of  grammar-school  course)  a  graded 
series  of  experiments  has  the  pedagogical  value  of  stimulating  care- 
fulness in  observation  of  details,  on  the  one  hand,  and  of  awakmg 
interest  in  the  universal  (however  abstract  and  mechanical)  aspects 
of  energy,  on  the  other.  Chemistry,  again,  even  in  such  simple 
experiments  as  are  applicable  here,  not  only  reveals  the  special  rela- 
tion between  quantity  (in  its  extensive  aspect)  and  quality  (which 
is  merely  quantity  in  its  intensive  aspect),  but  it  also  opens  the  way 
for  the  comprehension  of  the  inner  mechanism  of  organic  processes. 
And,  again,  the  elements  of  biology  serve  specially  well  as  a  means 
to  cultivate  the  power  of  accurate  observation  \i.  e.,  the  exerciGC  of 
perception  regulated  and  clarified  through  direct  subordination  to 
reflection),  just  as  they  serve  further  to  awaken  the  mind  to  a  recog- 
nition of  the  universal  and  (as  compared  with  those  unfolded  in 
physics)  highly  concrete  aspects  of  energy  as  manifested  in  the 
various  types  of  organisms,  including  the  whole  process  of  the  evo- 
lution of  the  individual  as  the  concrete  embodiment  of  the  type; 
work  specially  adapted  to  exercise  of  judgment. 

(4)  Geography  is  the  co-ordination  of  organic  and  inorganic  forms 
with  special  reference  to  place  of  abode  and  means  of  subsistence 
for  man  ;  as 

(5)  History  is  the  tracing  of  the  process  of  human  evolution  as 
taking  place  under  such  conditions.  It  is,  in  fact,  through  the 
study  of  the  natural  sciences,  supplemented  by  geography  and  his- 


1 62  APPENDIX. 

tory,  that  the  individual  is  made  clearly  aware  of  the  world  as  his 
own  immediate,  concrete,  inexorable  ♦*  environment "  in  the  sense  J 
of  that  total-sum-of-conditions  upon  actual  rational  relation  with  j 
which  his  own  evolution  as  a  normal  individual  depends.  The 
study  of  the  natural  sciences  (whether  in  elementary  or  advanced 
form),  supplemented  by  the  study  of  geography  and  history,  has, 
therefore,  this  twofold  pedagogical  value  :  (a)  that  in  such  study 
the  mind  is  trained  intellectually  to  observation — /.  e.,  the  recogni- 
tion of  universal  modes  of  energy  and'types  of  forms  as  manifested 
in  particular  examples  ;  and  (<^)  that  there  is  awakened  and  stimu- 
lated the  ethical  conviction  that  only  through  law  and  order  is  any 
real  life  for  man  attainable. 

3.  I  consider  manual  training  desirable  as  part  of  elementary 
education  in  so  far  as  it  serves  to  render  pupils  clearly  conscious 
(i)  of  the  peculiarity  of  textures  of  woods  and  metals,  etc.,  (2)  of 
fhe  chief  (geometrical)  forms  involved  in  manufacture,  and  (3)  in 
so  far  as  it  serves  to  bring  eye  and  hand  into  definite  practical  sub- 
ordination as  actual  organs  of  the  mind.  Physical  culture  and  physi- 
ology I  would  admit  to  a  limited  measure  of  time  and  attention 
upon  the  same  ground  (of  increased  efficiency  of  physical  structure 
as  organic  to  mental  function),  carefully  restricting  them  within 
that  limit.  I  would  include  music  as  the  normal,  most  direct,  and 
most  adequate  form  in  which  the  emotional  aspect  of  the  mind  can 
be  expressed.  I  would  introduce  Latin  as  early  as  the  beginning 
of  the  seventh  year  ;  and  this  for  the  purpose  of  emphasizing  the 
significance  of  variation  of  form  as  a  means  of  precisely  expressing 
the  various  shades  of  meaning  involved  in  the  same  universal  con- 
cept. One  of  the  modern  languages  ought  also  to  be  studied, 
beginning  with  the  sixth  or  even  fifth  year  ;  and  this  for  the  pur- 
pose of  comparison  as  between  different  forms  of  expressing  the 
same  general"  degree  of  (modern)  thought.  For  this  purpose  the 
language  of  one  of  the  more  highly  cultivated  modern  nations 
would,  of  course,  prove  most  serviceable.  (The  less  highly  culti- 
vated nations  are,  in  effect,  not  "modern.")  Hence  either  German 
or  French  or  Italian  should  be  chosen. 

The  study  of  any  foreign  language  (but  most  of  all  a  highly 
developed  one)  must  react  upon  that  of  the  native  language,  thus 
rendering  the  consciousness  of  the  native  forms  of  expression  more 
precise,  and,  through  this,  clarifying  the  thought  and  invigorating 
the  whole  mind  of  the  individual. 
^  4.  Sequence  of  topics  for  pedagogical  purposes  must  of  course 
first  of  all  bear  reference  to  the  order  of  development  of  the 
individual  mind.  For  this  reason,  as  far  as  practicable,  the  pupil 
ought  to  be  led  through  observation  of  particular  instances  to  the 
recognition  that  these  are  really  only  particular  instances  of  univer- 
sal forms,  types,  principles,  truths.  For  the  teacher  these  universal 
aspects  are,  indeed,  presuppositions  —  having  become  such  in 
explicit  degree  through  repeated  tracing  of  the  whole  ground.  For 
the  pupil  they  are  unknown  and  (mainly)  unsuspected.  For  him 
the  course  is  one  of  discovery  (induction).  For  the  teacher  the 
course   is  .one  (largely)  of   demonstration    (essentially  deduction, 


I 


ON   CORRELATION   OF   STUDIES.  163 

though  formally  induction).  It  is,  in  truth,  thus  only  that  he  can 
securely  lead  the  pupil  through  the  noting  of  particular  facts  to 
clear  consciousness  of  universal  principles.  The  process  will  no 
doubt  conform  mainly  to  the  essential  evolutionary  steps  of  the 
race  (both  that  particular  race  to  which  the  child  belongs  and  to 
the  human  race  in  general). 

5.  The  essential  purpose  in  correlating  studies  is  that  of  perfect- 
ing the  total  complex  medium  for  the  unfolding  of  the  total  com- 
plex unit,  mind,  as  at  once  intellectual,  ethical,  and  (in  healthy 
sense)  emotional. 

6.  All  studies,  elementary  and  advanced,  can  be  correlated  under 
the  complementary  aspects  of  physical  and  spiritual.  Outer  and 
inner  mathematics  is  the  science  of  universal  abstract  forms. 
Physics  and  chemistry  are  the  supplementary  aspects  of  the  univer- 
sal abstract  science  of  forces  (modes  of  energy).  Biology  is  the 
science  of  the  fundamental  concrete  unfolding  of  types  of  organic 
units  expressing  essential  modes  of  energy  in  clearly  defined  forms. 
Man  is  the  unit  in  which  all  these  converge  (he  is  literally  the 
''  microcosm  "),  and  hence  (as  intimated  above)  geography  is  prop- 
erly to  be  regarded  as  simply  a  descriptive  summarizing  of  the 
total  sum  of  outer  conditions  of  human  development,  as  history  is 
the  tracing  of  the  outlines  of  that  development,  while  language  is  at 
once  its  record  and  also  its  subtlest  medium. 

9.  Length  of  recitation  ought  to  be  determined  by  average  power 
of  attention  on  part  of  pupils  of  the  given  grade. 

14.  No.  The  subjects  being  chosen  presumably  with  reference 
to  truest  growth  of  mind  in  any  case. 

15.  No.  Method  is  first  of  all  and  essentially  an  expression  of 
the  personality  of  the  teacher.  If  personal  idiosyncrasies  are  so 
great  as  to  render  the  work  capriciously  only  one-sided,  that  is 
evidence  that  the  teacher  has  not  been  really  educated,  or  that  he 
is  inherently  not  well  balanced,  and  hence  ought  not  to  be  allowed 
a  place  in  the  schoolroom  at  all.  Sound  of  mind  (intellectually 
and  ethically)  and  well  educated,  the  individual  is  his  own  best 
method.  Subjected  to  any  prescribed  "  method  "  (in  point  of  detail), 
his  work  must  become  mechanical,  /.  e  ,  brutal — ineffective  for  good, 
effective  only  for  evil. 

16.  To  this  I  answer:  Effectiveness  of  total  work^  (i)  intellectu- 
ally, (2)  ethically.  The  higher  the  degree  of  actual  cultivation  and 
self-command  on  the  part  of  the  teacher  employed,  the  earlier  can 
specialization  be  profitably  undertaken.  Ideally  it  ought  to  begin 
with  the  beginning  of  the  first  day  of  the  first  year. 

17.  On  the  principle  that  those  who  have  taught  them  know  best 
what  their  actual  attainments  are.  As  a  check  upon  one-sidedness 
of  inexperienced  teachers,  an  examination  on  a  set  of  questions 
from  the  "  central  office  "  ought  doubtless  to  be  held.  But  in 
every  case  this  again  ought  to  be  conducted  and  the  papers 
marked  by  the  teacher  who  has  had  charge  of  the  class  in  the  given 
subject. 


164  APPENDIX. 

B.  T.  Davis,  Superintendent  of  Schools,  ^inon^i,  Minn. 

10.  Elementary  education    should   be    introduced   with    kinder-| 
garten  instruction  at  about  four  years.     The  child  will  begin  by] 
acting   and  doing,  the  handling  of  things  and  the  working  oui,j 
through  forms,  his  ideas  and  thought  as  developed  to  him.     He  wi.ll 
begin  by  the  handling  of  forms,"  seeing  and  observing  ;  following! 
this  by  making  and  representing,  and  will  be  gradually  led  from  the] 
very  concrete  representations  to  more  abstract  written  forms,  fol-| 
lowing  with  oral  and  written  language,  through  which  reading  soon] 
becomes  a  part,  and  numbers  have  been  a  concrete  companion  from] 
the  start.     Color  has  also  been  a  companion  of  form.     Nature  study 
has   been    introduced   from  the  very  start.     The  child   has  been 
taught  to   observe,  interpret,  and  express  the  ideas  and  thoughts 
arising  in  its  own  environment.     During  the  first  and  second  years 
language,  with  all  of  its  parts  (written  and  spoken,  etc.),  including 
reading,  science,  penmanship,  drawing,  music,  and  physical  culture, 
have  all  formed  parts  of  the  course  of  instruction,  giving  suitable  jj 
variety  to  claim  the  child's  interest  and  attention,  and  calling  forth  '' 
all  of  the  activities  of  the  child's  nature.     At  the  third  year,  geog- 
raphy should  be  introduced,  although  it  has  been  formerly  touched 
upon  as  drawing  or  form,  with  perhaps  related  place  exercises. 
Although  introduced  as  geography  in  the  third  year,  it  is  still  largely 
a  matter  of  form,  place,  and  physical  representation,  gaining  its  more, 
distinctive  character  as  the  work  progresses  and  the  child's  strength 
and  power  of  comprehension  increase.     History  should  be  intro- 
duced in  the  form  of  stories  and  biographical  sketches,  and  more 
formally  as  narrative  reading  or  story  work,  about  the  fifth  year. 
Handcraft,  in  various  forms,  should  be  correlated  with  drawing  from 
the  very  start.      Later  in  the  course,  special  drawing  may  find  its 
suitable  time  and  place  in  the  various  subjects  of  the  course,  and 
the  drawing  time  may  be  quite  largely  devoted  to  handcraft,  draw- 
ing being  its  constant  companion.      Physiology,  or  hygiene,  and 
physics  should  hold  their  proper  and  related  places  in  the  science 
work  above  indicated.     Modern  language  or  Latin  might  find   a 
suitable  place  in   the  seventh  or  eighth  year.      The  elements  of 
algebra  or  geometry  should  find  a  correlated  relation  to  arithmetic, 
and  should  have  a  place  in  the  seventh  or  eighth  year  in  this  form, 
while  much  of  the  more  simple  introductory  elements  of  geometry 
have  found  a  correlated  place  in  form  study  (drawing)  almost  from 
the  very  start. 

11.  In  making  a  programme,  time  should  be  assigned  for  erxh 
leading  subject.  Those  things  introduced  wholly  in  a  correlated 
way  should  have  a  time  only  as  they  appropriately  appear  in  con- 
nection with  the  subjects  of  the  formal  programme. 

12.  In  the  first,  second,  third,  and  fourth  years  of  the  course,  three 
hours  each  week  should  be  devoted  to  drawing  (form,  color,  and 
handcraft);  three  hours  to  readmg  (spelling,  reader  work,  language, 
and  supplementary  and  original  composition);  two  and  one-half 
hours  to  language  ;  two  and  one-half  hours  to  writing  ;  three  hours 
to  numbers  ;  two  and  one-half  hours  to  physical  culture  and  recrea- 


ON   CORRELATION   OF   STUDIES.  165 

lion  ;  three  hours  to  general  lessons  (elementary  science,  history 
siories,  fairy  tales,  etc);  the  same  order  should  be  observed.  In 
the  third  and  fourth  years,  geography  will  find  a  place  by  increasing 
the  time  of  the  school  day  thirty  minutes,  giving  two  and  one-half 
hours  each  week  to  this  subject.  In  the  fifth,  sixth,  seventh,  and 
eighth  years,  history  should  find  a  place  by  reducing  the  time 
given  to  writing,  reading,  and  general  lessons.  This  subject  should 
occupy  about  three  hours  each  week  during  the  last  four  years  of 
the  elementary  course.  Where  algebra  and  geometry  are  intro- 
duced in  part  of  the  eighth  year,  it  is  substituted  at  the  time  assigned 
to  numbers.  Where  Latin  or  a  modern  language  is  introduced,  it 
should  appear  at  the  language  period,  which  otherwise  should  be 
interpreted  as  English, 

13.  The  answer  to  this  question  may  be  inferred  in  part  from  the 
answer  given  to  number  12  in  the  parenthetical  parts.  While  these 
topics  have  separate  times  on  all  formal  programmes,  the  correlated 
relation  should  not  be  overlooked.  The  work  in  drawing  should 
early  become  a  means  of  expression,  and  find  a  place  in  nearly  all 
parts  of  the  programme.  Language  should  pervade  the  entire  pro- 
gramme, and  in  this  sense  the  whole  programme  may  be  said  to  be 
language  ;  yet  a  language  period  is  necessary,  that  some  of  the  more 
important  language  forms  and  technical  points  relating  to  this  sub- 
ject may  find  a  special  time  and  a  different  opportunity  for  treat- 
ment. Spelling  has  a  relation  to  every  subject  and  a  place  in  every 
subject,  yet  the  attempt  to  teach  spelling  wholly  in  this  correlated 
way  is  to  neglect  it.  There  must  be  a  special  time  at  which  spelling 
is  systematically  and  regularly  considered.  Otherwise,  it  is  neg- 
lected, and  the  result  is  poor  spelling.  Reading  early  becomes  a 
part  of  the  number  work,  the  language  work,  general  lessons,  geog- 
raphy, history,  and  music.  Yet  we  must  have  a  special  time  for 
reading,  that  will  give  especial  attention  to  the  expression  and  the 
details  of  the  subject.  This  time  may  be  reduced  later  in  the  course, 
if  the  work  has  been  well  done  at  the  beginning.  General  lessons 
should  have  a  very  intimate  and  direct  relation  to  language,  as  do 
geography,  history  (when  introduced),  furnishing  the  subjects  for 
thought ;  the  thought  side  being  developed  in  these  classes,  and 
the  language  side  receiving  especial  attention  in  the  language  class 
and  at  the  language  hour.  This  question,  to  be  fully  answered, 
would  require  tedious  enumeration.  I  will  not  expand  further,  but 
will  refer  you  to  the  course  of  study  in  the  manual  for  these 
schools,  which  I  send  you  under  another  cover. 


B.  C.  Gregory,  Supervising  Principal  of  Public  Schools, 

Trenton,  N.  J. 

I.  I  cannot  see  any  reason  for  reducing  the  elementary  course 
to  six  years.  I  think,  however,  that  such  a  reduction  is  to  be  in- 
ferred from  the  recommendations  of  the  Committee  of  Ten.  Ordi- 
narily I  should  regard  the  termination  of  the  elementary  course 
at  any  given  point  as  a  matter  purely  of  convenience,  were  it  not 


/ 


l66  APPENDIX. 

for  the  question  of  departmental  teaching  which  enters  into  the 
question.  The  secondary  schools  necessarily  imply  departmental 
teaching,  and  I  am  opposed  to  departmental  teaching  until  the 
child  has  finished  at  least  eight  years  of  his  elementary  course  ; 
this  involves  the  discussion  of  question  i6.  I  am  very  radical 
on  this  question  of  departmental  teaching  ;  I  do  not  believe  in 
it  at  all  at  any  time,  but  recognize  that  there  comes  a  time  when 
there  is  no  other  method  possible.  The  scope  of  the  subjects 
taught  in  high  schools  is  so  great  that  no  one  man  can  do  more 
than  obtain  a  fair  mastery  over  one  of  them  ;  to  master  several 
of  them  is  simply  out  of  the  question.  Departmental  teaching  is, 
therefore,  forced  on  us,  not  because  the  teaching  is  better,  but 
because  several  subjects  cannot  be  mastered  by  one  teacher  ;  I 
should  therefore  answer  question  i6  by  saying  that  the  considera- 
tion which  should  determine  the  point  at  which  the  specialization  in 
the  work  of  the  teacher  should  begin  is  the  consideration  of  neces- 
sity. My  reasons  for  objecting  to  the  special-teacher  system  are 
the  following  : 

(i)  The  boy  during  the  grammar-school  age  needs  a  teacher's 
care.  She  must  understand  him  thoroughly,  and  a  teacher  who 
teaches  a  boy  in  all  subjects  can  understand  him  more  thoroughly 
than  a  special  teacher  can  ;  she  could  adapt  her  teaching  to  his 
peculiar  needs  with  accuracy.  The  charge  against  the  public 
schools  is,  that  the  children  are  taken  in  masses,  and  their  individ- 
uality is  not  considered.  The  departmental  system  exaggerates 
this  trouble  because  no  one  teacher  understands  the  boy  thor- 
oughly. The  class  teacher  can  individualize  her  instruction  ;  she 
can  find  out  what  is  his  peculiar  bent,  what  subjects  can  be 
gone  over  rapidly,  and  what  subjects  can  receive  more  minute 
attention. 

(2)  Related  to  the  above  is  the  fact  that  in  specialized  teaching 
just  so  much  time,  say  forty  minutes,  must  be  given  to  each  boy  in 
each  subject  ;  each  boy  must  have  forty  minutes  in  arithmetic, 
forty  minutes  in  grammar,  etc. ;  no  other  state  of  things  is  possible 
where  the  children  spend  a  certain  period  in  each  room.  Now,  with 
the  class  teacher  it  is  ascertained  very  quickly  that  some  boys  do 
not  need  forty  minutes  in  arithmetic,  but  need  sixty  in  language, 
and  the  teacher  distributes  her  force  so  as  to  bring  to  bear  upon 
each  pupil  just  what  he  needs. 

(3)  Departmental  teaching  makes  correlation  of  studies  very  diffi-  ■ 
cult.  The  tendency  of  departmental  teachers  is  to  consider  each 
his  own  subject  without  reference  to  its  relations.  I  do  not  say 
that  departmental  teachers  do  this,  but  that  the  tendency  is  in 
that  direction,  and  to  overcome  this  a  principal  must  give  very 
careful  supervision,  and  when  he  has  done  his  best  he  does  not 
obtain  from  his  departmental  teachers  that  correlation  of  studies 
which  a  teacher  can  who  is  teaching  the  several  studies  to  be  cor- 
related. The  specialized  teaching  leaves  out  what  is  known  as 
co-ordination.  One  of  the  evils  of  public-school  teaching  is.  that 
each  subject  is  considered  entirely  independent  of  the  other,  and 
this  is  a  most  unnatural  state  of  things  ;  for  instance,  no  matter 


ON   CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  1 67 

how  carefully  a  boy  is  taught  writing  during  the  penmanship  lesson, 
he  generally  considers  that  he  has  nothing  to  do  with  penmanship 
when  he  turns  his  attention  to  the  language  lesson  ;  or  he  may  be 
very  carefully  instructed  in  correct  language  during  the  language 
lesson,  and  if  he  has  to  write  an  exercise  in  geography  he  considers 
that  the  rules  of  language  do  not  apply. 

(4)  Again,  the  psychological  aspect  of  correlation,  which  I  discuss 
below,  has  a  bearing  on  the  case  ;  I  think  it  is  impossible  to  make 
that  psychological  consideration  effective  if  several  teachers  have 
one  pupil. 

(5)  Again,  my  experience  is  that  the  moment  an  all-round  teacher 
takes  up  departmental  work  she  becomes  narrow  ;  I  have  known  a 
few  exceptions  to  this  rule,  but  the  rule  is  as  I  have  given  it. 

(6)  Lastly,  if  any  subject  should  be  specialized,  it  is  moral  train- 
ing, but  moral  training  must  take  a  subordinate  place  in  the  depart- 
mental system.  Where  a  child  has  five  teachers  instead  of  one, 
nt>bGdy  can  becotne  intimately  acquainted  with  his  moral  nature,  and 
I  respectfully  submit  that  this  is  one  of  the  most  important  features 
of  the  teacher's  work.  The  special  teacher  is  not  in  a  favorable 
position  to  give  this  training^  She  Tias  to  overlook  it  or  lose  the 
sense  of  responsibility^  which  must  form  the  basis  of  moral  train- 
ing. To  the  all-round  teacher,  moral  training  is  an  important 
matter.  The  teacher  of  arithmetic,  on  the  contrary,  is  apt  to  think 
that  her  work  is"  arithmetic,  and  that  moral  training  is  incidental. 
Moral  training  requires  continued  attention,  steady  effort,  and  this 
is  a  difficult  matter  where  the  teacher  sees  the  pupil  but  forty 
minutes  a  day.  The  special  teacher  is  not  in  a  favorable  position 
to  give  this  training ;  her  responsibility  is  to  the  subject  she 
teaches,  and  she  is  likely  to  overlook  the  necessity  of  moral  train- 
ing, or  at  least  resort  to  such  temporary  expedients  as  shall  secure 
results  while  the  child  is  taking  his  period  with  her. 

I  have  been  a  little  lengthy  over  this  question  because  it  seems 
to  me  that  it  is  the  key  to  the  answer  to  question  i.  I  believe 
that  the  objections  I  have  urged  against  departmental  teaching 
apply  even  in  the  high  school  ;  but,  as  I  have  said  before,  in  the 
high  school  the  difficulty  of  mastering  more  than  one  subject  is  so 
great  that  departmental  teaching  becomes  a  necessity.  I  would 
postpone  the  departmental  teaching  to  the  ninth  year,  because  I  be- 
lieve up  to  this  time  the  boy  can  be  more  successfully  handled  by 
the  all-round  teacher. 

1  am  sorry  to  find  myself  in  opposition  to  yourself  and  many 
other  educators  on  this  subject,  but,  after  having  carefully  weighed 
the  merits  of  the  question,  and  been  made  sadly  conscious  of  the 
evils  of  departmental  teaching  in  Trenton,  1  am  compelled  to  main- 
tain my  position  as  opposed  to  departmental  teaching  prior  to 
the  ninth  year  in  school. 

2  and  3.  This  is  a  tremendous  question.  I  fear  that  my  thought 
is  not  sufficiently  crystallized  to  answer  you  very  philosophically. 
Will  you  allow  me  to  consider  questions  2  and  3  as  one  question, 
and  to  present  my  answer  in  a  somewhat  less  categorical  way  than 
is  demanded  in  your  questions  ?     I  desire  to  take  the  pedagogical 


^^ 


1 68  APPENDIX. 

value  as  the  heading  under  which  I  would  group  my  answers.  I  do 
this  because  I  can  answer  questions  6  and  7  and  8  in  what  seems  to 
me  to  be  a  more  philosophical  manner  than  if  I  take  up  each  sub- 
ject by  itself.  The  classification  of  values  which  1  offer  is  not  very 
scientific,  but,  on  the  other  hand,  rather  superficial  It  seems,  how- 
ever, to  me  to  be  sufficiently  exact  to  furnish  a  basis  for  argument, 
although  not  exact  enough  to  base  a  completed  scheme  of  correla- 
tion on. 

(i)  To  begin  with,  some  of  the  studies  relate  to  the  physical  con- 
dition ;  these  are  hygiene  and  physical  culture. 

(2)  Several  of  the  studies  bear  a  very  important  relation  to  the 
training  of  the  body.  Penmanship  and  drawing  look  to  a  co-ordina- 
tion of  special  muscles.  Manual  training  has  for  one  of  its  pur- 
poses a  very  important  co-ordination  of  muscles.  Apart  from  the 
considerations  of  health,  physical  culture  looks  to  a  co-ordination  of 
muscles. 

(3)  Several  of  the  studies  are  partially,  and  in  some  cases  princi- 
pally, valuable  because  they  furnish  the  automatic  means  by  which 
further  acquirements  are  made  possible.  Penmanship  is  valuable 
largely  for  this  reason.  Drawing  is  valuable  to  a  very  considerable 
extent  for  the  same  reason.  Language,  up  to  a  certain  point,  is  to 
be  considered  merely  the  automatic  means  by  which  we  receive  or 
communicate  thought.  Arithmetic  has  its  automatic  side,  too  often 
left  out  of  consideration. 

(4)  Several  of  these  studies  have  an  observational  phase.  The 
natural  sciences  are  conspicuously  valuable  because  they  train  the 
observation.  The  training  in  language  has  an  observational  side 
of  considerable  importance,  not  always  sufficiently  considered. 
Manual  training  has  a  very  important  observational  side.  There  is 
also  an  observational  side  to  the  teaching  of  language  and  even 
music.     Drawing  is  emphatically  an  observational  study. 

(5)  Related  to  the  foregoing  is  the  fact  that  several  of  these 
studies  deal  particularly  with  the  concrete,  and  are,  therefore, 
related  in  a  very  close  manner  to  the  observational  studies.  Among 
these  studies  are  the  sciences,  plane  and  inventional  geometry,  and 
manual  training. 

(6)  Several  of  the  studies  offer  opportunities  for  the  develop- 
ment of  the  judgment  ;  they  involve  not  only  observation  but  com- 
parison, and  therefore  they  tend  in  a  peculiar  way  to  exactness  in 
thought  and  in  manual  operations.  Manual  training  is  one  of  these 
studies,  geometry  is  another,  algebra  another,  and  drawing  another. 

(7)  The  reason  under  various  aspects  is  trained  by  mathematics, 
history,  geography,  sciences,  and  language.  In  some  cases  the 
inductive  processes  are  developed  and  generalizations  are  made, 
and  in  other  cases  the  reasoning  is  deductive.  Algebra,  for  in- 
stance, is  peculiarly  valuable  because  it  favors  the  process  of  gen- 
eralization. 

(8)  Imagination  is  trained  in  geography,  in  history,  in  language, 
and  frequently  in  the  teaching  of  natural  sciences. 

(9)  Most  of  the  studies  are,  to  a  greater  or  less  extent,  memory 
studies  :  some  of  them  have  been  made  too  much  so. 


ON   CORRELATION   OF   STUDIES.  169 

(to)  Studies  which  develop  the  aesthetic  emotion  deserve  separate 
consideration.  Drawing,  music,  natural  science,  and  literature 
deserve  consideration  here.  This  may  be  said  to  be  covered  by  the 
studies  which  develop  the  imagination.  I  have  made  a  separate 
classification  because  I  wish  to  lay  special  emphasis  on  the  astheiic 
imagination. 

(11)  Training  of  the  moral  sentiments,  and  therefore  the  training 
of  the  will,  call  in  such  studies  as  history,  physical  culture,  and 
hygiene,  the  latter  because  the  consideration  of  the  body  tends  to 
the  consideration  of  sobriety,  self-control,  etc. 

It  ought  to  be  observed  that  such  distinctions  as  these,  or  any 
other  distinctions,  do  not  permit  of  accurate  lines  of  demarcation  ; 
for  instance,  referring  to  the  studies  which  are  intended  to  be  con- 
sidered on  their  automatic  side,  it  is  perfectly  clear  that  even  in 
developing  automatic  power  we  develop  at  the  same  tim.e  the 
observing  power,  and  some  power  of  reasoning  and  imagination. 
It  will  be  noticed,  further,  that  in  considering  the  various  studies 
each  study  falls  under  several  classifications. 

Answering  question  3  specifically,  I  would  introduce  every  sub- 
ject named  into  the  elementary  course  excepting  the  languages ;  by 
and  by  they  may  be  introduced,  but  my  observation  leads  me  to 
believe  that  children  have  not  the  power  of  comparison  sufficiently 
developed  to  take  in  the  idiomatic  construction  of  other  languages. 
All  they  get,  even  if  they  are  successfully  taught,  is  an  automatic 
use,  within  very  narrow  limits,  of  another  language,  and  I  do  not 
see  any  place  for  this  in  the  school  course. 

I  have  answered  your  questions  in  this  peculiar  way  because  I 
wish  to  base  the  correlation  on  psychological  considerations  rather 
than  on  any  arbitrary  grouping  of  Studies.     - 

4.  The  sequence  should  be  determined  by  the  child's  power  to 
apperceive  ne^  ideas.  As  the  apperception  may  lead  in  several 
directions,  the  logical  development  of  the  subject  should  be  the 
secondary  consideration  determining  which  of  these  directions 
should  be  taken  ;  this  is  discussed  a  little  more  at  length  in  answers 
to  questions  6,  7,  and  8.  The  considerations  relating  to  "  the  evolu- 
tionary steps  manifested  by  the  race  "  belong  to  the  nebulous  mat- 
ter to  which  I  have  referred  at  the  beginning  of  this  article.  I 
mean  that  the  subject  seems  to  me  to  be  in  its  infancy  ;  it  is 
involved  with  the  most  difficult  sociological  questions,  and  depends 
for  its  answer  on  the  answers  to  questions  which  sociology  only  can 
give.  I  have  failed  to  find  in  educational  writings  anything  more 
than  the  most  general  propositions,  and  much  that  is  written  on  the 
subject  seems  to  me  to  belong  to  the  domain  of  platitude.  If  I 
should  answer  the  second  half  of  the  question  directly,  I  should  say, 
yes,  certainly,  and  I  would  give  the  preference  rather  to  the  human 
race  than  to  the  race  to  which  the  child  belongs.  I  do  not  mean  to 
imply  by  what  I  have  said  that  nothing  has  been  discovered  by 
which  we  may  institute  a  parallel  between  the. evolution  of  the  race 
and  the  evolution  of  the  child.  Certain  broad  propositions  are 
sufficiently  clear,  but  when  we  commence  to  deal  with  details  I  find 
myself  in  very  great  doubt,     I  do  not  think  that  the  evolution  of 


I/O  APPENDIX. 

the  race  furnishes  us  as  yet  with  definite  standards  to  aid  us  in 
arriving  at  the  truth  ;  I  would  rather  trust  to  the  considerations 
drawn  from  embryology  than  from  sociology  ;  I  think  at  present 
they  are  far  more  instructive  and  definite.  One  thing  is  sure  :  the 
regular  teacher  will  for  a  long  time  be  little  affected  by  sociological 
considerations. 

5.  Postponed.     (See  after  question  8.) 

6,  7,  and  8.  I  cannot  approach  the  subject  of  correlation  from 
the  standpoints  suggested  in  questions  6  and  7,  and  1  am  not  sure 
that  1  understand  what  is  meant  by  correlating  the  results  of  work. 

It  occurs  to  me  that  the  word  ''  correlation  "  is  frequently  used, 
like  the  word  "co-ordination,"  to  indicate,  not  correlation,  but  some 
method  by  which  we  may  teach  two  subjects  at  once,  as  when  we 
teach  reading  and  history  by  reading  history.  If  correlation  be 
thus  limited  in  its  signification,  I  think  that  the  subject  is  simplified 
very  much,  and  becomes  a  series  of  devices  for  combining  subjects. 
My  conception  of  correlation  takes  in  not  only  this,  but  also  the 
broader  idea  involved  in  the  literal  meaning  of  the  word  ;  /.  ^.,  it 
looks  not  only  to  the  combination  of  subjects,  but  even,  where  that 
is  not  possible,  to  correlation.  Two  subjects  may  be  regarded  as 
kindred,  and  should  be  taught  in  conjunction,  the  one  with  the 
other,  even  when  they  cannot  be  actually  combined  in  one  lesson. 

With  this  preliminary  statement  in  mind,  I  refer  to  my  long 
analysis  under  the  head  of  questions  2  and  3.  I  am  aware  that  this 
analysis  involves  nothing  new  ;  it  enables  me,  however,  to  answer 
questions  6  and  7  more  in  accordance  with  my  own  lines  of  think- 
ing. The  central  thought  is,  that  the  correlation  is  based  on  these 
conditions,  physical  or  psychical,  which  are  to  be  associated  with 
any  given  age  or  state  of  progress  of  children.  The  kindergarten 
recognizes  this  theory  fully,  and  the  morning  talk  is  the  means 
of  correlation.  If  this  suggestion  of  Froebel's  be  extended  with 
suitable  modifications  to  cover  the  whole  of  the  school  course,  I 
think  we  have  a  starting  point  in  theory,  at  least,  for  the  construc- 
tion of  a  correlated  course  of  study. 

To  illustrate,  take  the  child  at  the  beginning  of  his  course  of 
instruction,  the  classification  already  alluded  to.  Thus,  the  ques- 
tion of  health  is  important ;  such  a  treatment  of  physical  culture 
and  hygiene,  therefore,  as  is  appropriate  to  that  age,  must  be  given, 
and  those  two  subjects  may  easily  be  co-ordinated.  The  training  and 
co-ordination  of  the  muscles  of  the  body  begin  at  this  p6int,  and, 
indeed,  are  exceedingly  important.  Such  training  and  co-ordination 
as  belong  to  the  age  of  the  child  having  been  decided  upon,  we  may 
thus  select  from  the  subjects  of  penmanship,  drawing,  manual 
training,  physical  culture,  etc.,  the  exercises  answering  the  purpose. 
These  subjects  should  be  correlated  with  the  main  purpose  in  view. 
Considering  the  fact  already  noted,  that  certain  studies  are  valuable 
as  the  automatic  means  by  which  every  attainment  is  made,  as  was 
indicated  in  the  third  class  of  studies  above,  the  peculiar  bent  which 
is  to  be  given  to  the  teaching  of  penmanship,  drawing,  language, 
and  arithmetic,  from  this  point  of  view,  is  evident.  In  practice  the 
automatic  nature  of  the  result  to  be  accomplished  is  not  usually 


ON  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  171 

kept  in  view.  The  means  employed  in  the  teaching  of  these  studies 
are  illogical.  Again,  this  time  of  life  is  peculiarly  the  time  when 
the  observing  powers  need  training  ;  here  is  the  function  of  natural 
science,  manual  training,  music,  and  drawing,  so  far  as  they  cul- 
tivate the  observation. 

I  have  gone  far  enough  to  indicate  a  scheme.  Granting  that  cer- 
tain physical  or  psychological  objects  are  proper  at  a  given  age  or 
state  of  progress,  these  objects  furnish  the  basis  of  classification 
under  which  the  correlation  is  to  be  made.  The  arrangement  of 
the  programme  with  this  in  view  is  another  consideration,  to  be 
touched  upon  later  ;  I  frankly  admit  that  it  is  a  very  difficult  con- 
sideration. 

There  is  another  correlation  which  is  evident  from  the  classifica-^ 
tion  I  have  given,  and  that  is  the  correlation  of  purposes.  In  the 
foregoing  classification  I  have  named'Ten  different  purposes.  I  do 
not  consider  this  as  an  exclusive  list ;  but,  assuming  it  to  be  the  list 
for  the  present,  it  iS  easy  to  see,  for  example,  that  matters  of  health 
and  matters  of  physical  co-ordmation  are  easily  correlated.  It  is 
also  easy  to  see  that  the  training  of  the  observation  can  be  very 
closely  related  in  certain  stages  of  progress  to  the  training  of  the 
imagination,  and  in  other  stages  of  progress  to  the  training  of  the 
reason.  The  teaching  of  natural  science  illustrates  this  proposition. 
After  the  earlier  years  have  been  passed,  the  studies  in  natural 
science  involve  such  a  close  connection  between  the  observation 
and  the  reason  that  the  line  of  demarcation  is  very  hard  to  draw. 
This  is  a  case  in  which  two  purposes  of  instruction  are  correlated 
in  one  study.  The  correlation  of  two  different  purposes  may  in- 
volve the  correlation  of  two  different  studies,  as  when  drawing  and' 
geometry  are  correlated,  the  use  of  the  observation  being  correlated 
with  questions  of  exactness  involving  the  judgment,  and  even 
matters  of  reason  involved  in  the  geometrical  process.  I  am  aware 
that  this  will  seem  very  vague  ;  I  offer  it  merely  as  a  starting  point 
in  the  investigation  of  a  subject  on  which,  so  far,  very  little  that  is 
definite  has  been  added  to  our  knowledge. 

5.  Yes  to  (a),  (d),  (r).  A  special  remark  is  necessary  in  connec-^i 
tion  with  {c),  if  I  am  to  understand  the  development  of  character  as 
something  largfer  than  the  ethical  purpose  referred  to  in  the  second 
half  of  (c).  I  do  not  see  how  the  individuality  of  the  child  can  be 
developed  unless  we  proceed  in  accordance  wdth  the  lines  I  have 
marked  out,  or  other  lines  founded  on  a  similar  classification. 
Reading  has  no  meaning  in  itself  ;  it  does  not  suggest  character 
development  or  ethical  development,  but  both  are  involved  in  read- 
ing. The  development  of  character,  however,  is  a  very  composite 
process,  involving  the  development  of  all  the  powers  of  the  mind 
and  their  physical  expressions;  the  attention  should  therefore  be  ' 
concentrated  on  the  particular  power  or  function  to  be  developed, 
and  the  correlation  should  be  made  with  this  in  view. 

Referring  for  a  moment  to  sentence  (^),  I  think  that  the  apper- 
ceiving  power  of  the  mind  expresses  itself  through  various  channels, 
and  the  classification  of  these  various  departments  of  action  is  not 
based  logically  on  studies,  but  on  function. 


172  APPENDIX. 

9,  I  do  not  try  to  answer  the  first  half  excepting  to  say,  what 
everybody  knows,  that  the  recitations  in  the  earlier  years  of  the 
elementary  course  should  be  short.  I  think  that  the  prominent 
consideration  that  determines  the  length  of  a  recitation  is  that  of 
interest  ;  this  is  especially  true  in  the  case  of  younger  children  ;  and 
as  interest  has  a  direct  relation  to  the  vital  force  of  the  child,  the 
latter  is  necessarily  involved.  In  later  years  a  very  important  con-  j 
sideration  is  the  strength  of  the  will,  by  which  the  student  compels  ) 
attention  to  a  subject  not  very  interesting.  I  believe,  however, 
with  Sully,  that  the  limit  of  this  power  is  very  soon  reached,  and  we 
come  back,  after  all,  to  the  consideration  of  interest.  The  adjust-  j 
ment  of  a  programme  is  very  important  in  view  of  the  fact  that  the 
vital  force  of  children  declines  perceptibly  during  the  day  and  the 
arrangement  of  studies.  The  programme  should  take  into  account 
the  decreasing  power  of  the  child  to  attend,  and  this  fact  also 
regulates  the  length  of  time  which  should  be  devoted  to  a  given 
study  ;  e.  g.,  the  period  should  not  be  so  long  in  the  afternoon  as 
in  the  morning.  Again,  those  studies  which  can  be  more  easily 
made  interesting  will  admit  of  longer  periods  than  those  studies 
which  cannot  be  made  so  interesting.  And,  finally,  the  ability  of 
the  teacher  to  engage  the  interest  of  the  class  is  a  very  important 
consideration.  A  teacher  whose  power  is  limited  must  arrange  her 
programme  with  shorter  periods  than  a  teacher  whose  power  is 
greater  in  this  respect. 

10.  To  answer  this  question  in  full  would  take  more  time  than  I  u 
have  to  give.  Will  you  pardon  me  if  I  refer  you  to  my  course  of 
study,  recently  issued,  in  which  the  matter  is  pretty  fully  discussed? 
If  you  have  not  a  copy,  I  will  try  to  send  you  one.  The  subject  is 
also  discussed  in  the  latter  part  of  my  last  report.  In  general,  I 
desire  to  say,  that  the  subjects  in  10  should  be  introduced  earlier 
than  they  have  been  introduced.  The  pedagogical  considerations 
referred  to  in  answer  to  questions  2  and  3  indicate  the  basis  on 
which  an  answer  is  to  be  constructed. 

IT.  My  thought  is  that  all  programmes  should  be  elastic  and 
should  vary  from  day  to  day  ;  this  need  not  prevent  the  teacher 
from  making  a  formal  programme  subject  to  variations.  I  do  not 
see  how,  at  present,  a  programme  can  be  made  up  that  is  not  based 
on  subjects  ;  but  if  the  elastic  nature  of  the  programme  is  kept  in 
mind,  this  need  not  interfere  with  the  carrying  out  of  the  proposi- 
tions referred  to  in  my  answer  to  questions  6,  7,  and  8.  Each  of 
the  studies  of  the  course  at  a  given  period  of  the  child's  advance- 
ment has  some  prominent  characteristic.  Thus,  in  the  earlier  years 
the  prominent  function  of  the  training  in  science  is  to  develop  the 
observation  ;  later  on  it  becomes  a  subject  in  which  generalization  is 
more  important  than  observation.  Now,  in  the  earlier  years  of  the 
course,  during  the  time  assigned  for  natural  science,  it  is  entirely 
feasible  to  introduce  language  if  the  language  is  understood  to  be 
a  means  of  recording  the  results  of  the  observation,  or  to  introduce 
drawing  with  the  same  purpose  in  view.  Similarly,  the  language 
period  may  be  used  for  the  introduction  of  other  studies  which  are 
intended  to  attain  the  same  purpose  that  is  proposed  by  the  teacher 


ON   CORRELATION   OF   STUDIES.  1 73 

as  the  principal  object  of  the  day's  lesson.  I  do  not  see  that  any- 
thing would  be  gained  yet  by  assigning  a  period  to  a  group  of  sub- 
jects. I  think  that  the  development  of  the  subject  may  some  day 
indicate  the  propriety  of  arranging  the  day's  programme  on  the  basis 
of  the  purposes  of  instruction  as  indicated  in  questions  2  and  3. 
The  difficulty  here  is  that  these  purposes  are  continually  running 
into  and  overlapping  each  other  ;  but  this  is  correlation,  and  I  do  not 
see  that  it  is  a  serious  objection.  A  programme  in  which  the  first 
half-hour  was  given  to  observational  studies,  and  the  next  half-hour 
to  automatic  studies,  and  the  next  half-hour  to  muscular  training 
and  co-ordination,  and  the  next  half-hour  to  the  cultivation  of  the 
imagination,  would  be  a  singular  programme  ;  and  yet  some  such 
plan — not  very  clear  to  me,  I  admit — seems  to  be  the  outcome  of  the 
reasoning  above,  and  I  believe  it  will  yet  be  found  to  be  the  key  of 
the  situation. 

12.  See  answer  to  question  11.  I  refer  you  again  to  my  course 
of  study. 

13.  I  refer  to  my  course  of  study.  I  do  not  think  that  this  is  a 
perfect  course  of  study,  by  any  means,  but  it  is  somewhat  in  accord- 
ance with  the  above  line  of  thought,  and  I  would  offer  it  merely  as 
an  approximation.     I  think  I  could  do  better  if  I  should  try  again. 

14.  No.  If  the  psychological  development  is  followed,  there 
can  be  no  exceptions,  and  the  high  school  must  be  made  to  fit  the 
boy  if  it  is  wrong  ;  the  boy  should  not  be  made  to  fit  the  high  school. 

15.  I  refer  you  to  my  last  report  for  the  year  ending  August  31, 
1893,  pages  153  to  186. 

16.  Already  answered  under  question  No.  i. 

17.  On  their  ability  to  take  up  the  work  of  the  next  grade,  not 
as  ascertained,  however,  by  an  examination.  The  opinion  of  the 
teacher  should  be  the  important  consideration.  I  am  aware  that 
this  presents  practical  difficulties,  because  there  are  many  teachers 
whose  opinions  are  not  worth  considering  ;  but  you  must  recollect 
that  this  objection  applies  to  everything  referred  to  in  the  whole 
circular.  The  method,  I  think,  is  the  correct  one.  Teachers  must 
be  trained  to  meet  this  demand.  It  will  be  observed  that  the 
course  of  study  proposed  in  the  answers  to  your  circular  would 
enable  a  child  to  be  promoted  much  more  easily  than  under  former 
courses  of  study  ;  such  a  course  of  study  would  fall  under  the 
classification  "concentric  "  or  "  spiral  "  courses  of  study,  terms  pretty 
well  understood  at  this  time.  The  fact  that  a  child  fails  in  history 
ought  not  to  keep  him  from  being  promoted,  as  has  been  the  case 
in  former  days.  A  failure  in  history  may  indicate  a  deficiency  of 
imagination,  or  it  may  indicate  a  deficiency  in  the  reasoning  faculty  ; 
and  the  indication  thus  afforded  ought  to  be  followed,  and  the 
deficiency  made  good  if  the  nature  of  the  child  will  permit  it.  This 
reasoning  may  sometimes  indicate  the  classification  of  the  child  in 
two  classes  in  different  subjects,  but  should  not  prevent  advance- 
ment unless  the  deficiencies  are  so  general  that  the  child  is  clearly 
unable  to  go  on  with  his  companions.  This  is  the  basis  on  which  I 
am  working  in  Trenton,  at  least. 


174  APPENDIX. 

Paul  H.  Hanus,  Assistant  Professor  of  the  History 

and  Art  of  Teaching,  Harvard  University. 

Ray  Greene  Wxha^q,  Head  Master  of  the 

English  High  School,  Cambridge,  Mass. 

Samuel  T.  Button,  Superintendent  of  Schools, 

Brookline,  Mass. 

Augustus  H.  Kelley,  Head  Master  of  the  Lyman  School, 

Boston,  Mass. 
Frank  A.  Hill,  Secretary  of  the 

State  Board  of  Education,  Boston,  Mass. 

Charles  H.  Grandgent,  Director  of  Modern 

Language  Instruction,  Boston,  Mass. 

1.  We  call  attention,  in  the  first  place,  to  the  fact  that  in  many- 
towns,  where  the  school  age  is  five,  the  length  of  the  combined  ele- 
mentary and  secondary  courses  is  not  twelve  but  thirteen  years  ; 
and,  in  the  second  place,  to  the  existence,  in  some  institutions,  of  a 
third  division,  9-3,  not  mentioned  in  the  question.  The  arrange- 
ment 8-4  (or  9-4)  seems  to  us  the  best  of  all.  We  like  it  better 
than  the  9-3  (or  10-3)  system,  because  we  regard  three  years  as  too 
short  a  time  for  secondary  training  ;  and  we  prefer  it  to  the  6-6  (or 
7-6)  division,  because  we  fear  the  latter  would  encourage  an  early- 
withdrawal  of  pupils  from  school.  In  any  case,  we  favor  the  sepa- 
ration of  the  quick  from  the  slow  scholars,  and  the  introduction  of 
a  double  curriculum  that  will  neither  retard  the  progress  of  the 
abler  pupils  nor  unduly  hurry  the  duller  ones.  We  believe,  more- 
over, that  courses  must  be  so  arranged  and  methods  so  shaped  that 
the  transition  from  the  elementary  to  the  secondary  grade  shall  be 
scarcely  perceptible. 

2.  Each  subject  has,  in  the  later  elementary  period — i.  e.,  after  the 
work  has  properly  diverged  into  separate  but  more  or  less  closely- 
correlated  subjects — a  distinct  pedagogical  value.  What  it  is  in  each 
case  has  never  been  demonstrated.  In  general,  it  may  be  said  that 
each  subject  has  a  peculiar  value  for  each  pupil  in  at  least  two 
respects  :  (i)  for  the  development  of  incentives — mental,  moral, 
cesthetic,  constructive,  through  interest;  and  (2)  for  the  development 
Qi  power  (to  think  and  to  execute')  and  of  desirable  habits  of  expression 
afid  co7iduct.  For  these  purposes  the  several  subjects  should  be 
regarded  by  the  teacher  as  instruments  through  which  the  pupil  is  to 
be  discovered.  It  is  only  on  the  basis  of  such  a  discovery  that  the 
pupil's  development  of  incentives,  power,  and  habits  can  be  intelli- 
gently stimulated  and  guided. 

With  this  general  view  of  educational  values  in  mind,  the  follow- 
ing details  are  suggested  :  •    • 

Language  and  literature  are  valuable  as  instruments  of  acquisi- 
tion and  expression,  and  literature  is  especially  valuable  for  its 
influence  on  aims  and  character.  Reading,  spelling,  and  "  lan- 
guage "  are  helpful  in  all  stages  of  elementary  education  ;  grammar 
only  in  the  latest  stages. 


ON  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  1 75 

Mathematics  introduces  order  into  man's  conception  of  the  world, 
through  number  and  form,  and  is  further  valuable  as  a  means  of 
forming  habits  of  accurate  perception  of  and  deductive  reasoning 
on  mathematical  data.  The  range  of  such  habits,  however,  is  nar- 
row, aind  they  are  not,  to  any  considerable  degree,  transferable  to 
other  conceptions.  Arithmetic  is,  besides  its  value  for  commercial 
purposes,  also  valuable,  like  both  algebra  and  geometry,  as  an  aid 
in  the  prosecution  of  other  subjects.  Concrete  geometry  has  a 
special  value  in  developing  right  concepts  of  the  form  and  measure- 
ment of  material  objects,  and  demonstrative  geometry  a  similar 
value  in  forming  habits  of  deductive  reasoning.  Inasmuch  as  the 
ability  to  reason  is  late  of  development  in  most  children,  this  form 
of  geometry  should  be  sparingly  used  in  elementary  schools. 

Geography  is  useful  in  leading  the  pupil  to  observe,  compare, 
generalize  (in  a  degree),  and  record  facts  relating  to  the  earth's 
surface  and  its  inhabitants.  It  is  adapted  to  use  with  children  in 
all  but  the  lowest  stages  of  elementary  education,  and  has,  like 
arithmetic,  considerable  commercial  value.  It  is  an  important 
means  of  correlating  nature  study  and  literature  and  history  study. 

History  supplies  information  concerning  man's  experiences  and 
achievements  ;  and  by  continually  exercising  the  pupil's  mind,  at 
first  unconsciously,  but  finally  consciously,  in  repeated  acts  of  judg- 
ing and  reasoning  in  regard  to  the  motives  and  the  acts  of  nations 
and  of  individuals,  it  may  be  used  as  a  means  of  developing  high 
aims  and  habits  of  judicious  thinking  about  men  and  affairs. 

The  value  of  natural  science  lies  in  the  readiness  with  which  it 
lends  itself  to  the  formation  of  habits  of  accurate  observation,  accu- 
rate recording,  and  inductive  reasoning.  The  first  of  these,  obser- 
vation, is  the  aim  to  be  chiefly  sought  by  this  means  in  elementary 
schools.  Each  of  the  three  branches  named,  botany,  zoology,  and 
mineralogy,  have  also  some  information  value,  but  that  value  de- 
pends somewhat  upon  the  subsequent  career  of  the  child. 

Penmanship  is  valuable  as  a  means  of  communication  with  others 
(and  doubtless  also  as  an  aid  to  precise  thinking). 

Drawing  gives  the  mind,  through  the  eye,  correct  habits  of  per- 
ceiving form  and  proportion,  and  through  the  hand  correct  habits 
of  expressing  these  qualities.  (Some  color  training  is  also  wise.) 
It  also  creates  in  many  the  beginnings  of  an  appreciation  of  art, 
and  so  adds  another  to  the  refined  pleasures  of  life. 

3.  Other  subjects  than  those  mentioned  above  should  be  taught 
in  the  elementary-school  course. 

Elementary  instruction  in  art  should  accompany  the  work  in 
history  and  literature.  For  this  purpose  busts  and  casts  should  be 
available,  that  the  pupils  may  learn  to  know  and  to  appreciate  these 
achievements  of  men,  as  well  as  the  directly  "  useful  "  products  of 
human  effort. 

Manual  training  (including  sloyd,  sewing,  and  cooking)  should 
be  taught  in  these  -schools,  for  its  value,  (i)  as  supplying  useful 
information,  (2)  as  a  means  of  developing  habits  of  construction 
(one  form  of  expression),  and  (3)  as  a  test  of  the  pupil's  aptitude, 
and  so  as  a  guide  to  his  future  studies  and  occupations.     (Some 


1/6  APPENDIX. 

pupils  respond  to  this  stimulus  who  have  previously  been  unre- 
sponsive.) 

Physical  culture,  with  the  element  of  play  made  prominent, 
should  be  taught  in  order  to  counteract  the  injurious  tendency  of 
indoor  confinement  and  other  ordinary  school  conditions,  and  in 
order  to  promote  systematically  the  child's  normal  physical  devel- 
opment. 

Physiology  (including  the  effects  of  stimulants  and  narcotics) 
should  also  be  taught,  in  order  that,  through  accurate  knowledge,  a 
motive  may  be  supplied  for  the  continuance  of  right  physical 
habits.  The  instruction  in  physiology  and  that  in  physical  culture 
should  be  duly  co-ordinated. 

Physics  should  be  taught  as  a  means  of  inducing  good  habits 
of  observing  and  manipulating  material  objects,  and  of  measuring 
material  forces,  and  also  for  its  value  as  a  test  of  aptitudes. 

Music  should  be  taught  as  another  means  of  expression,  and  for 
the  addition  it  brings  to  the  pleasures  of  life. 

A  second  language  (in  addition  to  English)  should  be  taught  in 
the  elementary-school  course,  in  order  that  a  pupil  may  early  begin 
the  acquisition  of  two  literatures  instead  of  merely  one  ;  that  he  may 
compare  at  least  two  methods  of  expression  of  thought  ;  to  insure 
the  consequent  broadening  of  his  mental  horizon  ;  and  that  he  may 
enrich  his  vocabulary,  quicken  his  literary  observation,  and  strengthen 
his  power  of  literary  analysis.  The  second  language  should  be 
modern  rather  than  ancient,  because  in  structure,  in  order  of  words, 
and  in  vocabulary,  modern  languages  resemble  our  own  more 
nearly,  and  so  present  le£S  difficulty  to  an  elementary  pupil. 

4.  We  understand  that  the  phrase  "  the  sequence  of  topics  "  is 
used  by  the  committee  to  mean  the  sequence  of  different  studies  as 
well  as  the  sequence  of  the  subdivisions  of  a  single  subject.  We 
interpret  the  phrase  "the  child's  power  to  apperceive  new  ideas"  to 
mean  the  child's  power  to  assimilate  new  knowledge  with  the  help 
of  his  past  acquisitions  (both  of  knowledge  and  power).  We 
assume  that  the  committee  employ  the  phrase  *'  logical  development 
of  the  subject  "  to  mean  only  a  deductive  or  synthetic  exposition  of 
the  subject,  and  that  the  committee  believe  there  is  always  a  neces- 
sary conflict  between  such  a  development  of  the  subject  and  the 
child's  power  to  assimilate  the  knowledge  so  presented  ;  otherwise 
we  fail  to  understand  the  alternative  in  the  first  part  of  question  4. 

We  believe  that  the  process  by  which  a  child  assimilates  new 
ideas  may  be  either  an  inductive  or  a  deductive  process  ;  but  that 
acquisition  by  inductive  processes  is  the  chief  mode  cf  normal 
acquisition  in  young  children,  and  that  acquisition  by  deductive 
processes,  though  beginning  at  an  early  age,  is  normally  of  gradual 
development.  While,  therefore,  the  child's  power  to  apperceive  new 
ideas  is  employed  both  in  deductive  and  inductive  acquisition,  his 
normal  mode  of  acquisition  is  mainly  an  inductive  process  ;  and 
hence  the  sequence  of  topics  within  a  given  subject  should  be 
chiefly  adapted  to  those  processes.  As  regards  the  sequence  of 
different  subjects,  we  believe  that  for  the  first  two  or  three  years 
of  school  life  the  only  sequence  of  subjects  aimed  at  should  be  the 


ON   CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  1 77 

sequence  involved  in  an  orderly  presentation  of  the  whole  field  of 
knowledge.  After  the  first  two  or  three  years,  however — that  is, 
after  the  subject-matter  of  instruction  begins  to  diverge  definitely 
into  several  distinct  studies — the  child's  power  to  apperceive  new  ideas 
will  often  make  it  possible  and  desirable  to  present  a  subject  in 
accordance  with  its  logical  development.  This  is  possible,  because, 
through  proper  instruction — that  is,  through  adequate  and  telling 
illustrations  and  through  the  correlation  of  different  topics  in  the 
same  subject  and  of  one  subject  with  other  subjects — knowledge 
may  be  assimilated  by  a  deductive  process  without  rote  learning 
or  diminution  of  interest  or  self-activity  on  the  pupil's  part ;  and 
desirable,  because  the  child  should,  with  increasing  maturity,  receive 
training  in  the  acquisition  of  subjects  through  their  logical  develop- 
ment, and  also  because  there  is  often  a  considerable  saving  of  time 
in  such  development  of  a  subject  over  what  would  be  needed 
for  a  purely  inductive'development.  Both  inductive  and  deductive 
modes  of  developing  subjects,  therefore,  seem  to  us  desirable.  The 
relative  use  to  be  made  of  each  of  these  processes  in  every  lesson, 
or  in  successive  years,  must  be  determined  by  the  needs  of  the 
children  and  the  tact  and  judgment  of  the  teachers. 

Second  part  of  4.  "  The  evolutionary  steps  manifested  by  the 
race  "  seems  to  us  too  vague  a  phrase  to  be  more  than  generally 
suggestive  in  a  matter  involving  such  specific  details  as  the  sequence 
of  subjects  or  topics.  The  phrase,  of  course,  suggests  that,  in  many 
respects,  ancient  races  were  childlike,  and  that  from  the  interests 
of  these  races  we  may  learn  something  of  the  interest  of  modern 
children  ;  and  that,  in  a  general  way,  these  interests  may  be  made 
serviceable  in  the  choice  of  topics  for  the  instruction  and  entertain- 
ment of  modern  children.  But  to  assert  that  the  sequence  of  topics 
employed  for  the  education  of  modern  children  should  be  determined 
by  the  evolutionary  steps  manifested  by  the  race  is  to  assume  a 
knowledge  of  such  a  close  parallel  between  these  steps  and  the 
mental  and  moral  development  of  children  as  we  do  not  possess. 
To  attempt  an  arrangement  of  topics  with  such  a  vague  determining 
principle  we  believe  to  be  impossible  without  much  forcing. 

5.  We  answer  yes  in  reply  to  (a)  and  (d).  In  place  of  (c)  we  prefer 
the  following  statement : 

To  establish  as  many  natural  associations  as  possible  between  the 
pupil's  acquisitions,  so  that  the  habit  of  forming  associations  may  be 
developed.  This  is  only  another  way  of  saying  that  close  correla- 
tion may  help  the  pupil  to  form  the  habit  of  seeking  and  holding 
relations  between  all  his  experiences.  The  significance  of  all 
acquisitions  lies  in  their  relations.  This  habit  tends,  therefore,  to 
make  a  pupil  not  merely  a  learner,  but  ready  in  investigation  and 
application  ;  and  especially  during  the  later  years  of  the  grammar- 
school  period  and  all  of  the  high-school  period  this  habit  tends  to  help 
in  developing  dominant  groups  of  ideas.  These  dominant  groups 
of  ideas  involve  the  growth  of  permanent  interests  and  incentives 
which  may  lead  the  pupil  to  mental  and  moral  stability.  Moreover, 
such  dominant  groups  of  ideas  often  enable  him  to  decide  intelligently 
upon  the  probable  forms  of  activity  to  which  he  is  best  adapted. 


178  APPENDIX. 

This  statement  is  intended  to  indicate  the  way  in  which  correla- 
tion tends  to  develop  character. 

6.  In  the  first  two  or  three  years  of  school  life  all  subjects  should 
be  pursued  in  close  correlation.  In  the  later  years  of  the  course 
every  subject  should  be  correlated  to  all  others  so  far  as  they  are 
natural!;^  rejated.  Certain  subjects  have  natural  relations  through- 
out the  enTire  course,  and  may  be  grouped  for  correlation 
throughout. 

'  7.  There  are  certainly  two  great  groups  ;  viz.,  nature  studies  and 
history  and  literature  studies.  Geography  is  a  connecting  link 
between  these  two  groups,  and,  to  a  certain  extent,  binds  them 
tpgether. 

8.  This  question  has  been  partially  answered  under  6.  Correla- 
tion of  the  results  of  work  in  all  the  groups  we  regard  as  neither 
satisfactorily  possible  nor  desirable.  Complete  correlation  in  a  fair 
sense,  that  is,  in  the  sense  of  binding  all  subjects  together  through 
the  medium  of  some  selected  central  subject,  belongs  to  the  earliest 
grades.  Specialization  limits  correlation.  Less  stress  will  be 
placed  on  lateral  relations  in  proportion  as  greater  stress  is  placed 
upon  the  relations  that  are  consecutive.  The  best  correlation  is 
that  which  thinks  more  of  the  interest  aroused  and  the  resultant 
moral  tone  than  of  the  union  of  subjects.  True  co-ordination  is 
more  subjective  than  objective.  It  is  quality  of  mental  effort  rather 
than  quatitity. 

9.  Recitation  periods  should  be  very  short ;  a  few  minutes  only 
in  the  lowest  classes.  They  may  be  increased  as  the  children  grow 
older.  Thirty  minutes  ought  not,  in  general,  to  be  exceeded  in  the 
upper  grades  of  a  grammar  school,  although  some  subjects  may 
receive  forty- five  minutes  or  even  an  hour. 

10.  They  should  all  (algebra  and  geometry  excepted,  unless  by 
geometry,  for  instance,  is  meant  the  recognition,  drawing,  and  men- 
suration of  simple  shapes)  be  begun  in  the  lowest  class  and  con- 
tinued through  the  course.  Naturally,  the  simpler  facts  of  the 
sciences  are  meant,  and  nothing  like  formal  study  of  botany,  gram- 
mar, etc.,  in  the  younger  classes.  (See  report  of  Committee  of 
Ten,  except  that  biography  and  mythology  should  be  introduced 
earlier. ) 

11.  Before  an  answer  can  be  given  to  No.  11,  such  questions  as 
these  need  to  be  considered  : 

Ought  not  a  little  uncorrelated  work  (or  work  whose  correlations 
are  between  principles  last  studied  and  those  coming  next  in  the 
logical  development  of  the  subject)  to  be  done  each  day  before  any 
lateral  excursions  are  made  ?  For  instance,  ought  not  there  to  be 
specific  number,  drawing,  color,  and  word  lessons,  with  only  asso- 
ciation enough  to  develop  them  intelligently,  before  correlation  in 
the  larger  sense  is  attempted  with  the  products  of  such  lessons? 
This  seems  to  us  a  necessity.  If  so,  there  should  be  set  times  for 
such  comparatively  isolated  lines  of  work  and  set  times  for  the 
group  work. 

12  and  13.  The  subjects  of  an  elementary  course  belong  to  all  the 
years  of  it,  as  described  above.     The  only  question,  then,  is  the 


ON   CORRELATION   OF  STUDIES.  I79 

division  of  the  hours  of  the  day  or  of  the  week.  This  is  a  matter 
that  can  only  be  determined  by  intelligent  and  somewhat  extended 
experimentation.  The  changing  of  centers  for  correlation  from 
time  to  time  is  involved. 

The  work  of  the  elementary  schools  may,  in  accordance  with 
what  has  already  been  said,  be  grouped  under  the  following  general 
heads  : 

(i)  Language  and  literature. 

(2)  Science,  biological  and  physical. 

(3)  Mathematics — geometry,  arithmetic,  and  algebra. 

(4)  History. 

(5)  Art — music,  drawing,  modelling,  painting,  manual  training. 

(6)  Physical  exercises  and  play. 

Play  is  included  with  physical  exercises,  as  special  attention 
should  be  given  to  determining  the  kinds  of  play  best  suited  to 
physical  and  moral  development.  Most  of  the  time  given  to 
recesses,  as  at  present  conducted,  is,  to  say  the  least,  wasted. 

Play  should  and  can  be  made  as  useful  in  the  physical  and 
moral  training  as  gymnastics,  and  at  the  same  time  be  freed  from 
the  artificial  restraints  that  tend  to  diminish  spontaneity. 

For  purposes  of  experimentation,  the  following  time  divisions  are 
suggested,  on  a  basis  of  twenty-five  hours  a  week  : 

FIRST    AND    SECOND    YEARS    IN    SCHOOL. 

(i)  Language,  ten  hours  per  week,  including  one  hour  for  music. 
Here  music  counts  as  language,  but  no  less  as  art. 

(2)  Mathematics,  four  hours  per  week.     Details  omitted. 

(3)  Science,  three  and  a  half  hours  per  week.     Details  omitted. 

(4)  Form,  three  hours  per  week.  This  part  of  art  work  includes 
drawing  and  modeling,  correlated  with  2. 

(5)  Physical  exercises  and  play,  four  and  a  half  hours  per  week. 

YEARS,    THREE    TO    EIGHT    INCLUSIVE, 

(6)  Language,  eight  hours  :  English,  seven  hours  for  first  three 
years,  three  hours  for  last  three  years.  Foreign,  four  hours  for  last 
three  years  of  the  course.     Music,  one  hour  per  week. 

(7)  Science,  six  hours  per  week  :  Biology  (botany,  zoology, 
simple  physiology  and  hygiene),  physics,  geography,  and  chemistry. 

(8)  History,  two  hours  per  week  for  six  years. 

(9)  Mathematics,  four  hours  :  Arithmetic,  first  four  years,  three 
hours  per  week.  Geometry,  beginning  with  the  seventh  year,  one 
year  two  hours  per  week,  and  one  year  one  hour  per  week  ;  corre- 
lated with  arithmetic,  drawing,  nature  study,  and  manual  training. 
Algebra,  beginning  with  the  seventh  year,  one  year  one  hour  per 
week,  and  one  year  two  hours  per  week  ;  close  correlation  with 
arithmetic. 

(10)  Art — manual  training  and  drawing,  two  hours  a  week  for  six 
years. 

(11)  Physical  exercises  and  play,  two  hours  a  week  for  six  years. 


l80  APPENDIX. 

14.  No. 

15.  Yes.  To  answer  this  question  in  full  would  require  model 
lessons  covering  all  phases  of  school  work  throughout  the  entire 
course. 

J 6.  In  our  opinion,  the  introduction  of  specialization  should  be 
determined  by  the  following  considerations  : 

(i)  By  the  grade  of  the  class.  In  the  first  years  of  school,  the 
instruction  consists  of  a  general  introduction  to  the  field  of  knowl- 
edge, and  the  different  subjects  are  naturally  brought  by  the  teacher 
into  close  relation  with  one  another.  Not  until  the  fourth  or  fifth 
year  of  the  pupil's  school  life  do  the  various  branches  of  study 
diverge  into  distinct  channels.  Specialization  should  not  be 
attempted  before  this  time. 

(2)  By  the  nature  of  the  studies.  Some  branches,  such  as  Eng- 
lish, history,  and  geography,  can  easily  be  connected,  and  can  be 
well  taught  by  any  intelligent  and  capable  person  of  good  general 
education.  Others,  such  as  chemistry,  physics,  and  foreign  lan- 
guages, require,  if  the  best  results  are  to  be  obtained,  the  services 
of  a  specialist.  When  the  latter  subjects  are  introduced,  specializa- 
tion should  begin. 

(3)  By  the  character  of  the  school.  If  discipline  is  hard  to  main- 
tain, or  if  the  teachers  have  not  been  thoroughly  trained  in  any 
particular  branches  (and  are  not  willing  and  competent  to  acquire 
such  training),  the  conditions  are  unfavorable  to  specialization. 

17.  The  promotion  of  pupils  should  depend  on  their  fitness  to 
pursue  the  studies  of  the  higher  grade  ;  it  should  not  be  influenced 
by  their  age,  the  clamor  of  their  parents,  nor  the  insufficient  accom- 
modations of  schoolhouses.  The  scholars'  proficiency  should,  as  a 
rule,  be  determined  by  their  daily  work  rather  than  by  special 
examinations.  The  question  of  promotion  and  graduation  should 
never  be  left  to  school  boards  elected  by  popular  suffrage  ;  the  gen- 
eral principles  should  be  established  by  the  superintendent,  and  the 
individual  cases  should  be  decided  by  the  principal  in  consultation 
with  his  teachers. 

R.  H.  Jesse,  President  of  the  University  of  the  State  of 

Missouri,  Columbia,  Mo. 

On  the  FIRST  question  my  own  views  are  most  pronounced.  I 
think  the  elementary  course  should  be  six  years,  and  the  secondary 
course  four,  making  a  total  of  ten  years.  We  are  now  taking 
twelve  years  to  do  what  can  be  done  in  ten.  The  dullest  may  get 
through  in  twelve  years,  the  brightest  may  get  through  in  nine. 
But  I  think  that  students  of  average  ability  and  fair  industry,  with 
better  teaching,  and  especially  with  better  programmes,  can  do  in  ten 
years  what  they  now  are  domg  in  twelve.  My  own  experience  is 
based  upon  New  Orleans  and  rural  Missouri,  that  is  to  say,  all  of 
Missouri  that  does  not  reside  in  cities  of  ten  thousand  and  more. 
My  experience,  based  as  I  have  said,  is  that  two  years  are  lost 
in  the  eight-years'  district-school  course.  The  children  take  eight 
years  to  do  what  might  be  done  in  six. 


ON  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  l8l 

As  to  the  THIRD  question,  I  do  not  think  that  Latin  or  a  modern 
language  should  be  taught  in  the  elementary-school  course,  if  it  be 
reduced  to  six  years.  If  the  course  is  to  stay  eight  years  long,  I  am 
in  favor  of  enriching  the  last  two  years  to  such  an  extent  as  to  make 
them  practically  high-school  work. 

But  I  am  sure  you  would  not  have  sent  me  the  paper  if  you  had 
thought  it  was  to  draw  from  me  in  this  hot  weather  a  long  disquisi- 
tion. I  will  stop,  but  first  I  must  make  in  the  briefest  style  three 
remarks. 

First,  Ethical  culture  should,  in  my  opinion,  receive  more  em- 
phasis than  it  now  does  in  elementary  schools. 

Second,  Too  much  is  included  in  the  four-years'  course  of 
colleges — I  mean  our  best  colleges.  1'he  bachelors'  degrees  should 
mean  rather  less  than  they  now  do.  There  should  be  more  grad- 
uate work,  and  it  should  begin  a  little  earlier. 

If  I  had  my  time  to  go  over  again,  I  would  vote  to  put  more 
science  in  the  classical  course  proposed  by  the  Committee  of  Ten — 
in  fact,  I  would  put  science  in  every  year.  To  get  the  necessary 
time,  I  would  omit  something — painful  as  it  would  be  to  do  so — 
included  in  the  present  course. 

I  am  delighted  to  see  these  seventeen  questions  proposed  to  the 
Committee  of  Fifteen,  and  I  trust  that  the  committee  may  be  guided 
into  all  wisdom.  The  reformation  of  the  elementary  schools  is  even 
more  important,  in  my  opinion,  than  that  of  the  secondary  schools. 


L.  H.  Jones,  Superintendent  of  Schools,  Cleveland,  O. 

y^  WHAT    CORRELATION    OF   STUDIES   MEANS. 

It  implies  such  use  of  studies  together  as  to  secure  an  advantage 
not  to  be  had  from  separate  consecutive  study  of  the  same  subjects. 

What  are  some  of  the  advantages  that  may  thus  be  obtained  ? 

(i)  An  unrelated  fact  cannot  exist.  To  know  it  as  its  qualities 
alone,  without  knowing  its  relations,  if  this  were  possible,  would  be 
to  know  very  little  indeed  about  it.  Its  most  immediately  impor- 
tant attributes  are  often  those  of  relation.  After  the  fact  has  been 
known  in  its  essential  qualities,  the  next  study  is  its  most  important 
relations;  /.  ^.,  those  which  it  sustains  by  virtue  of  its  qualities,  or 
those  humanistic  relations  it  bears. 

Now,  it  is  impossible,  frequently,  to  find  the  appropriate  fact  with 
which  to  relate  the  one  just  learned,  in  its  own  field,  and  there 
will  never  be  another  time  when  the  tendency  of  this  fact  to  relate 
itself  properly  and  permanently  to  this  germane  fact  will  be  so 
strong  in  the  mind  of  the  learner  ;  hence  the  necessity  of  going 
outside  the  prescribed  limits  of  a  particular  subject,  and  correlating 
the  two  subjects,  in  order  to  establish  this  important  and  necessary 
relationship  at  the  most  favorable  moment.  Some  other  time  will 
not  do  so  well. 

The  teacher  can  in  a  large  measure  foresee  this  kindred  and 
appropriate  relationship  ;  therefore  it  is  possible  to  prepare  to  cor- 


l82  APPENDIX. 

relate  subjects.  Indeed,  some  subjects  by  their  very  nature  suggest 
correlation. 

For  instance,  literature  treats  of  a  class  of  ideas  that  are  inter- 
nal, difficult  to  define  or  describe,  but  easy  to  recognize  in  expe- 
rience when  the  proper  suggestions  are  made.  A  poetical  study 
of  nature—/.  ^.,  a  study  of  nature  as  related  to  human  life — assists  in 
suggesting  these  spiritual  ideas,  hopes,  ideals,  etc.;  hence  the  poeti- 
cal view  of  nature  is  the  natural  correlate  of  literature. 

In  the  same  way  the  scientific  study  of  nature  will  be  found  to  be 
the  natural  correlate  of  the  study  of  individual  life. 

There  are  numerous  other  lines  of  correlation  in  which  effective- 
ness in  instruction  is  secured  through  correlation  of  studies. 

(2)  Since  the  ideas  are  seen  more  quickly  and  intensely  by  the 
relations  of  likeness  and  contrast  made  possible  through  this  cor- 
relation, the  memory  is  made  more   permanent  with  less  repetition. 

(3)  The  habit  of  searching  for  valuable  relations  is  established, 
broader  sympathies  in  study  are  developed,  and  the  power  of 
rational  apperception  is  greatly  increased. 

(4)  Non-essentials  are  effectively  eliminated. 

(5)  There  is  a  generally  liberalizing  effect  on  character — an  im- 
pression of  general  unity  of  things,  even  under  diverse  appearances, 
that  is  of  great  value. 

(6)  It  develops  manliness,  tolerance,  respect  for  candid  opinion, 
and  a  contempt  for  pretense,  depending  on  what  ideas  he  now 
possesses  which  he  can  bring  to  bear  on  the  new  study. 

1.  The  elementary  course  of  study  should  be  eight  and  the  second- 
ary four,  as  now. 

2.  This  depends  upon  what  is  meant  by  pedagogical  value. 
Each  subject  (or  at  least  each  group  of  subjects)  has  by  its  nature 
the  capability  of  producing,  through  its  mastery,  a  distinctive  educa- 
tional effect  in  the  learner. 

The  following  analysis  will  make  this  clear  :  The  effect  of  learn- 
ing a  thing  or  of  taking  a  course  of  training,  so  far  as  the  mind's 
condition  is  changed  by  such  learning  or  training,  is  manifested  in 
some  of  the  following  respects  : 

(i)  The  spiritual  development  resulting  from  spiritual  sustenance 
or  nutrition,  such  as  is  given  by  social,  moral,  aesthetic,  humanita- 
rian, or  religious  ideas. 

(2)  The  spiritual  development  resulting  from  exercise  of  the 
spiritual  powers  in  accordance  with  laws  of  spiritual  life  and  growth. 

(3)  A  changed  condition  with  reference  to  the  possession  of  ele- 
mentary ideas  which  may  later  be  used  by  the  mind  for  combination 
into  more  valuable  or  usable  ideas. 

(4)  A  changed  condition  so  that  one  has  more  tools  in  the  form  of 
ideas  that  may  act  afterward  as  interpreting  ideas  (or  apperceiving 
ideas). 

(5)  A  new  set  of  ideals— ideals  of  life,  conduct,  achievement,  etc. 

(6)  A  new  condition  as  to  habits — intellectual,  emotional,  and 
practical  (or  volitional). 

Now,  it  is  clear  that  these  subjects,  or  groups  of  subjects,  differ 
in  their   adaptations   to  produce  these  effects,  some  possessing  a 


ON  CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  1 83 

higher  adaptation  to  produce  one  or  more  of  these  effects,  and 
others  possessing  a  special  adaptation  to  produce  still  different  ones. 

To  illustrate,  penmanship  gives  a  new  tool — a  conventional  means 
of  communication  between  human  beings,  rather  than  ideas  that 
are  spiritually  nutritious  ;  while  literature,  properly  mastered,  gives 
ideas  and  truths  so  touched  with  human  emotions,  and  so  related 
to  human  interests,  as  to  be  of  real  value  as  nutrition  for  a  human 
spirit,  and  to  be  of  real  use  in  the  formation  of  ideals  of  living,  so 
necessary  in  the  right  education  of  the  young 

So  history  studies  the  deeds  of  men  in  such  way  as  to  illumine 
life  and  living  ;  while  spelling  merely  makes  communication  possible 
in  a  certain  way. 

All  these  subjects  may  in  a  way  be  necessary,  but  they  serve 
distinctly  difl'erent  pedagogical  ends.  It  would  take  a  very  close 
analysis  to  distinguish  all  these  differences  ;  and  even  then  the 
whole  truth  would  not  manifest  itself,  because  these  subjects  are 
so  interrelated  that  the  best  effects  of  two  widely  differing  groups 
require  perfection  in  the  learning  of  both  groups. 

Certain  slight  correlations  should  be  effected  among  all  the 
studies,  much  closer  ones  by  groups,  and  most  close  between  cer- 
tain allied  subjects  in  the  same  group. 

3.  Many  subjects  enumerated  in  No.  3  should  be  taught  in  the 
elementary  schools.     At  least  one  language  other  than  the  mother 
f     tongue  seems  desirable  for  strong  pupils. 

\  X^  4.  There  should   be  so  much   attention  to  logical  sequence  of 
\    topics  as  the  child  is  able  to  bear  with  his  particular  stage  of  apper- 
ceiving  power. 

But  this  should  always  be  controlled  by  this  same  power  to 
apperceive.  This  power  to  appreciate  is  composed  of  two  elements : 
(i)  subjective  condition  of  child,  by  reason  of  his  development — 
strength,  etc.  ;  (2)  objective  condition,  as  to  the  ideas  which  he 
possesses,  which  may  become  apperceiving  ideas  for  the  subjects 
to  be  studied. 

(i)  is  somewhat  involved,  more  or  less,  with  the  stage  of  develop- 
ment of  the  children,  and  somewhat  in  the  law  which  controls 
race  development ;  but  (2)  is  dependent  chiefly  upon  what  have 
been  the  studies  pursued,  etc. 

y5.  All  are  more  or  less  involved.     A  fuller  answer  to    this  is 
found  in  introduction  above. 

6.  It  is  better  to  correlate  by  groups. 

14.  There  should  be  no  difference  of  treatment  not  authorized 
by  difference  of  capability  or  apperceiving  power  in  pupils. 

16.  The  points  of  specialization  of  work  by  teachers  should 
be  mainly  determined  by  the  point  of  development  of  character 
in  the  pupils  to  that  degree  in  which  they  no  longer  require  the 
complete,  consistent,  concrete  example  of  conduct  furnished  by  the 
one  teacher,  but  can  take  advantage  of  the  fragmentary  sugges- 
tions of  character  and  conduct  furnished  by  many  teachers  in  their* 
study  and  continuous  contact,  and  should  be  determined  only 
slightly  by  stages  in  logical  development  of  subjects. 

17.  The  leading  principle  on  which  promotion  of  pupils   from 


1 84  APPENDIX. 

grade  to  grade  should  be  made  is  the  ability  of  the  pupils  to  do 
the  work  of  the  next  grade  more  advantageously  than  to  continue 
repeating  the  work  of  the  grade  just  completed  or  which  is  just 
being  done. 

This  determination  should  be  by  the  superintendent,  who  should 
use  all  the  knowledge  the  teacher  in  charge  possesses,  and  supple- 
ment this  by  some  appropriate  additional  test. 

L.  R.  Klemm,  Bureau  of  Education,  Washington,  D.  C. 

1.  A  bifurcation  might  take  place  in  the  elementary  course  after 
the  sixth  year,  so  as  to  afford  all  who  intend  to  enter  a  secondary 
school  opportunities  for  beginning  the  study  of  foreign  languages 
and  mathematics.  The  other  pupils,  and  probably  the  majority, 
could  continue  their  elementary  course  until  it  is  completed  as  here- 
tofore. This  plan  recommends  itself  for  two  reasons  :  (i)  It  does 
not  hold  back  talented  pupils,  and  (2)  it  improves  secondary  edu- 
cation. 

2.  Yes,  but  a  detailed  answer  would  lead  to  the  writing  of  an 
essay,  which  would  be  entirely  de  trop  in  view  of  the  fact  that  Dr. 
Harris  has  discussed  the  value  of  these  studies  in  several  papers 
before  the  National  Educational  Association.  I  only  add  here,  that 
the  first  group  would  be  immensely  benefited  by  the  introduction  of 
a  foreign  language,  for  the  mother  tongue  is  never  learned  well 
unless  opportunity  for  comparison  with  another  language  is  offered. 

3.  Yes,  all  these  subjects  might  be  profitably  taught  if  restricted 
to  the  elements  or  rudiments.  Physical  culture  is  acquired  by 
exercise,  and  a  great  deal  more  should  be  done  in  this  direction, 
both  for  the  purpose  of  maintaining  and  promoting  health  and 
gracefulness  of  movement.  Physics  and  physiology,  as  well  as 
Latin  (or  a  modern  language),  should  be  branches  assigned  to  the 
seventh  and  eighth  years,  and  taught  only  to  those  who  intend  to 
enter  the  secondary  school.  This  is,  however,  not  to  be  interpreted 
as  meaning  that  no  allusion  to  physical  phenomena,  physiological 
functions,  or  references  to  philological  comparison  in  the  study  of 
the  mother  tongue,  should  be  excluded  from  the  regular  eight-years' 

/  elementary  course. 

y^  4.  That  the  sequence  of  topics  should  be  naturgemdss,  as  well  as 
■culturgemass,  is  an  axiom  which  needs  no  demonstration  ;  but  with 
reference  to  the  evolutionary  steps  manifested  by  the  race,  I  should 
say  that  the  child's  race,  or  nation,  is  of  supreme  importance.  The 
term  **  human  race  "  is  too  comprehensive  (embracing  as  it  does 
the  savages)  to  consider  it. 

^       5.  All  three  purposes  are  equally  important. 

6.  If  the  studies  of  each  group  mentioned  under  2  are  properly 
correlated,  the  further  correlation  of  the  groups  to  each  other  will 
result  naturally.  Mere  allusions,  made  as  chance  offers,  will  suffice. 
■It  is  at  this  stage,  as  it  is  with  the  student  at  a  university,  he  Vvill 
instinctively  feel,  and  soon  consciously  know,  the  near  or  remote 
relationship  of  all  knowledge. 

7.  Relation  might  be  established  in  a  practical  way  by  borrowing 


ON   CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES. 


I8S 


material  from  one  study  to  aid  another,  as,  for  instance,  arithmetic 
from  geography,  history,  and  drawing,  by  reckoning  with  actual 
facts,  and  not  with  abstract  numbers  only  (or  with  situations  in 
which  the  price  of  a  cow  is  found  to  be  sixty  cents,  and  that  of  a  beef- 
steak sixty-nine  dollars).  The  same  relation  may  be  established 
between  arithmetic  and  geometry  through  the  medium  of  mensura- 
tion, or  between  natural  history  and  physiology,  or  between  history 
and  language.  Any  class  teacher  who  is  well  versed  in  the  subjects 
he  teaches  will  establish  relations,  where  the  specialist  who  teaches 
only  one  or  two  branches  can  see  none. 

'^  8.  As  stated  before,  this  correlation  need  not  necessarily  be 
planned,  it  will  naturally  result  from  the  teacher's  tact  and  fore- 
thought. 

9,  That  depends  upon  the  climate,  location,  and  local  circum- 
stances. Ordinarily  five  or  six  recitation  periods  at  forty  to  forty- 
five  minutes  per  day,  five  times  a  week  for  forty  weeks  a  year, 
seems  ample.  In  the  primary  grades  the  periods  may  be  shorter, 
say  thirty  minutes  each. 

10.  In  a  rudimentary  way  every  branch  of  study  should  be  treated 
at  once  at  the  beginning  of  the  course  ;  as,  for  instance,  the  child 
who  learns  that  eating  unripe  fruit  is  dangerous  to  the  health,  or 
that  the  heart  beats  and  pumps  blood,  is  learning  physiology.  A 
child  who  gets  acquainted  with  the  fact  that  heat  rises,  and  that  it 
is  warmer  near  the  ceiling  than  near  the  floor,  studies  physics.  But 
the  regular  study  should  begin  in 


Language  (reading,  spelling).  ..ist  year 
Language  (grammar  and  com- 
position). .    ..6th  year  and  4th  " 

Arithmetic ist  " 

Geometry 7th  " 

Algebra 8th  " 

Geography 3d  " 

History 7th  " 

Natural  history 4th  ' ' 


Penmanship 2d  year 

Manual  training .4th  " 

Physical  exercises ist  " 

Physics 7th  " 

Physiology 8th  " 

Music  (singing) 1st  " 

Latin  (or  modern  languages).  ..7th  " 

Drawing 3d  " 


IT.  It  is  preferable  to  make  the  programmes  for  groups  and  not 
for  single  studies  ;  this  enables  the  teacher  to  make  changes  without 
disturbing  the  course.     An  elastic  programme  is  needed. 

12.  The  language  group  should  have  one  period  a  day,  mathe- 
matics four  times  a  week,  geography  and  history  four  times  a  week, 
natural  history  and  science  twice  a  week  ;  penmanship,  drawing,  and 
music,  as  well  as  manual  training,  should  share  the  fourth  period  of 
each  day.  This  leaves  the  fifth  period  for  physical  exercises,  and 
special  lessons  for  the  new  studies  of  the  seventh  and  eighth 
grades. 

13.  An  answer  to  this  would  necessitate  much  detail  work  ; 
much  depends  upon  local  conditions,  especially  upon  the  prepara- 
tion of  the  teacher. 

14.  Only  for  the  pupils  of  the  seventh  and  eighth  grades  who 
intend  to  enter  the  secondary  school  should  the  methods  applied 
and  the  matter  to  be  learned  be  different  from  the  simple  elemen- 
tary course. 


1 86  APPENDIX. 

15.  Not  very  well.  A  good  teacher  would  not  need  it,  and  a  bad 
teacher  would  not  profit  by  it. 

t6.  I  should  be  guided  by  experience,  which  tells  me  that  the 
bifurcation  may  take  place  profitably  after  the  sixth  year  of  the 
elementary  course. 

17.  The  teachers  and  the  principal  of  the  school  have  always 
appeared  to  me  to  be  the  proper  persons  to  grade  the  pupils.  But 
it  is  advisable  to  have  the  promotion  determined  by 

(i)  The  teacher  who  has  the  pupils. 

(2)  The  teacher  who  is  to  get  them. 

(3)  The  principal  as  the  presiding  judge. 

In  cases  of  disagreement,  the  assistant  superintendent  is  to 
decide.  An  appeal  from  his  decision  to  the  superintendent  is 
admissible. 

F.  M.  yic^UKKY,  Principal  of  the  Franklin  School, 

Buffalo,  N.  Y. 

In  regard  to  {a)  under  question  5,  I  should  like  to  make  a  few 
points  as  follows  : 

(i)  A  close  correlation  of  studies  will  furnish  a  jjwtive  in  pupils' 
minds  for  taking  up  new  topics.  A  real  motive^  instead  of  the 
ordinary  state  of  indifference^  gives  assurance  of  greater  mental 
activity,  better  apperception,  etc. 

(2)  It  will  save  much  time  by  making  long  explanations  unneces- 
sary ;  as,  for  instance,  when  the  reading  introduces  *'  Paul  Revere 's 
Ride,"  after  the  history  has  handled  the  battle  of  Lexington. 

(3)  ^y  ruling  out  irrelevant  ideas  it  leads  to  the  omission  of  non- 
essentials, for  the  irrelevant  notions  are  the  non-essentials  ;  for 
example,  brokerage,  cube  root,  first  three  French  and  Indian  wars,  etc. 

(4)  It  furnishes  abundant  opportunity  for  incide?ital  reviews,  which 
are  by  far  the  best  kind  of  reviews.  Ordinarily  the  mind  is  at  no 
tension  during  reviews,  the  memory^  and  not  the  judgment,  being 
appealed  to.  But  proper  correlation  furnishes  occasions  continually 
for  making  use  of  what  has  already  been  learned,  thus  giving  a 
motive  to  the  child  for  reviews.  Also,  the  old  points  are  usually 
reviewed  from  a  somewhat  new  standpoint  when  recalled  by  other 
studies ;  thus  not  only  the  interest,  but  also  the  thoroughness  of 
the  knowledge,  is  increased. 

Almon  G.  Merwin,  Principal  of  Grammar  School  No.  74, 

Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 

1.  If  the  purpose  of  elementary  schools  is  to  do  the  most  that 
can  be  done  for  the  pupil  who  does  not  go  to  college — that  is,  for 
the  vast  majority — I  think  it  better  to  make  the  course,  as  it  is 
now,  eight  years  and  four  years ;  otherwise  the  pupil  will  leave  the 
elementary  school  at  the  end  of  six  years,  and  not  enter  the  high 
school  at  all. 

2.  The  study  of  language  as  a  means  of  expression  better  pre- 
pares a  pupil  to  influence  others  ;  the  study  of  language  for  its 


ON   CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  1 8/ 

content  gives  ability  in  knowing  the  thought  of  other  minds  ;  the 
study  of  language  for  itself,  its  origin,  its  mechanics,  has  little  value, 
unless  combined  with  its  study  for  thought  and  expression.  When 
language  is  studied  for  the  thought,  it  cultivates  the  judgment, 
because  it  is  never  exact — except  mathematical  language — always 
approximate.  The  very  words,  "large,"  "small  ;"  "near,"  "far;" 
"  many,"  "  few  ;  "  "good,  ""bad" — tell  us  this.  In  consequence 
of  this  uncertainty  the  mind  is  obliged  to  judge  upon  probabilities. 
Judging  upon  probabilities  is  what  we  are  doing  nearly  all  of  the 
time  in  practical  life.  This  study  of  the  content  of  language  I 
believe  to  be  of  the  very  highest  practical  and  pedagogical  value. 

No  one  doubts  the  value  of  language  as  a  means  of  expression. 
Concise  and  clear  expression  reacts  upon  the  speaker's  mind,  or 
rather,  perhaps,  the  effort  at  clear  expression  brings  the  thought 
into  stronger  relief  in  order  to  clear  mental  vision,  which  alone 
makes  clear  expression  possible.  Great  fluency  does,  indeed,  fre- 
quently exist  with  very  little  thought  ;  language  becomes  the  rattle 
of  lumbering  emptiness,  not  the  hum  of  conscious  thought. 

Mathematics  is  that  form  of  language  which  deals  with  measured 
or  measurable  existences.  Verbal  language  approximates  only  ; 
mathematical  language  is  exact  or  more  nearly  exact.  If  mathe- 
matics has  any  special  value,  it  lies  in  this,  that  it  trains  the  mind  to 
exactness,  and  further,  that  it  gives  the  mind  the  power  to  abstract 
and  compare  relations,  or  elements,  common  to  many  different 
things.  Its  duty  is  to  measure  relations.  In  verbal  language  we 
say,  A  is  heavier  than  B  j  in  mathematical  language  we  say,  If  A  is 
I  in  weight,  ^  is  3  in  the  same  attribute. 

That  language  is  indispensable  to  thought,  speaking  generally, 
we  must  believe  ;  yet  much  of  the  best  thinking  is  done  without 
language.  The  inventor  thinks  in  terms  of  the  parts  of  his  imagi- 
nary machine,  and  it  requires  an  expert  to  put  the  machine  into 
verbal  language. 

This  brings  out  a  pedagogical  value  as  well,  I  suspect,  as  a  chief 
practical  value  of  language.  It  is  a  record  by  which  a  thought 
once  in  the  mind  is  caught  and  recorded  or  labeled  for  further 
observation  when  the  mind  has  leisure.  I  am  of  the  opinion  that 
but  for  the  discovery  or  invention  of  language  the  human  race 
could  never  have  emerged  from  brutehood. 

Geography  answers  that  natural  or  inherited  demand  of  the  mind, 
Where  ?  Its  special  value — pedagogical  value — is  that  it  cultivates 
the  imagination.  We  know  from  observation  but  little  of  the  world. 
We  see  a  little,  and  by  use  of  the  imagination  construct  the  rest. 

History  leans  somewhat  upon  geography  ;  indeed,  history  has 
been  made  possible  by  geographical  conditions.  It  exhibits  men 
in  the  trend  of  events  ;  it  forces  upon  the  mind  important  generali- 
zations, and  habituates  it  to  the  recognition  of  law  in  all  human 
affairs.  Under  right  mental  conditions  it  leads  to  the  highest  gen- 
eralizations. Too  often  in  elementary  schools  it  is  a  mere  patch- 
work of  events. 

Natural  sciences,  as  studied  in  elementary  schools,  do  very  little 
pedagogically  for  the  mind. 


1 88  APPENDIX. 

These  studies  may  or  may  not  cultivate  habits  of  observation! 
Science  involves  generalizations  that  belong  to  a  stage  of  develop^ 
ment  later  than  the  primary  schools.  Minute  and  prolonged  ob^ 
servation,  unless  accompanied  by  high  powers  of  generalization^ 
tends  to  narrow  the  mind.  Wide  generalizations  are  usually  sugi 
gested  by  a  few  facts  ;  a  theory  is  formed,  then  comes  verification  oi 
the  theory  by  a  multitude  of  observations.  This  is  the  work  ol 
well-developed  minds.  The  facts  of  natural  science,  like  othe| 
facts,  are  of  more  or  less  value  to  children.  I  apprehend  that  theif 
pedagogical  value  to  children  does  not  differ  widely  from  the  valu^ 
of  many  other  facts  common  to  every-day  life. 

Drawing  creates  habits  of  close  attention  and  care.  Its  general 
pedagogical  effect  upon  the  mind  is  good.  Its  value  in  enabling 
children  to  see  things  as  they  are  is,  I  think,  much  overestimated* 
Drawing  is  the  representation  of  appearances,  not  of  things  as  they 
are.  It  is  the  work  of  time  to  make  a  child  ignore  the  real  form 
and  draw  the  appearance  as  projected  on  a  plane  surface.  I  can 
conceive  that  in  many  cases  drawing  may  retard,  rather  than  aid, 
real  investigation.  We  record  things  by  drawing,  not  discover 
them.  As  a  record  and  as  a  form  of  language,  drawing  is  of  the 
very  highest  utility.  In  accuracy  of  expression,  drawing  is  also 
superior  to  verbal  language. 

3.  With  one  or  two  exceptions,  in  a  six-year  course,  I  say  env 
phatically  no.  In  an  eight-year  course  no  language  but  English, 
but  English  more  thoroughly. 

Educators  seem  to  deny,  by  their  acts,  that  the  school  is  for  a 
special  purpose.  .  They  assume  that,  whatever  the  child  is  to  be,  he 
is  to  be  made  in  school.  They  ignore  the  Church,  the  home,  anc 
that  all-important  education  that  comes  from  the  child's  association 
among  his  fellows,  and  his  experience  in  the  outside  world.  I 
believe  it  most  fortunate  for  humanity  that  there  are  phases  o; 
education  that  the  schools  cannot  control. 

I  might  say,  too,  that  the  school  tends  to  prevent  a  spontaneou! 
activity.     This   is   a    necessity.     The   school   is  directed  activity, 
Yet  we  are  not  to  forget  that,  as  nearly  as  possible,  we  are  to  secure 
directed  spontaneity.     At   best,  this  can  be  but  imperfectly  done 
There  are  the  studies  blocked  out,  and  there  is  the  time.     Each  one 
of  fifty  in  a  class  must  get  practically  the  same  quantity,  the  sam 
quality,  and  in  the  same  time.     A  future  examination   demands 
memoriter  drill,  which  leaves  little  time  for  mental  activity  in  other^ 
directions.     This  memoriter  drill  tends  to  repress  spontaneity.     In- 
cidents   may,  to   some   small  degree,   excite  spontaneous  activity. 
Besides,  it  is  the  very   nature  and   purpose  of  a  school  to  direct 
activity.     The   problem    is  to  direct  spontaneous   activity.     This 
problem  has  not  yet  been  solved.     Incidental  instruction  or  learn- 
ing cannot  take  the  place  of  specific  instruction.     If  it  could,  schools 
would  be  unnecessary. 

Therefore,  among  all  the  things  it  is  well  for  a  child  to  know,  we 
must  select  a  few,  the  most  important.  To  place  too  much  in  a 
course  of  study  is  like  trying  to  train  the  muscles  of  a  ten-year-old 
boy  to  lift  as  much  as  a  man — ^just  as  stupid,  just  as  impossible. 


ON   CORRELATION   OF   STUDIES.  1 89 

4.  Undoubtedly  by  the  child's  power  to  apperceive  new  ideas, 
which,  I  take  it,  means  his  power  to  understand  things.  The  child 
must  be  approached  on  the  side  of  his  experience.  One  child 
knows  mountains  and  plains  ;  another,  rivers  and  lakes  ;  a  third, 
cities  and  towns. 

No  child  in  school  can  receive  the  new  unless  there  is  in  his  mind 
a  structure  of  knowledge  to  which  he  can  attach  it — into  which  he 
can  build  his  new  ideas,  a  category  under  which  the  new  will  fall. 
This  structure,  or  this  category,  is  more  or  less  modified  by  the 
new,  while  the  new  is  labeled  as  this  or  that  by  the  structure  into 
which  it  is  built,  or  the  category  under  which  it  falls.  It  is  probable 
tliat  every  mind  sees  a  new  subject  from  a  standpoint  a  little  differ- 
ent from  that  of  every  other  mind.  This  comes  from  the  fact  that 
no  two  minds  have  just  the  same  experience.  It  also  suggests  the 
uiherent  difficulty  to  be  met  in  our  schools.  We  are  obliged  to 
start  a  thousand  children  in  just  the  same  way,  regardless  of  their 
differing  experiences. 

I  should  not  consider  for  one  moment  "  the  evolutionary  steps 
manifested  by  the  race  " — by  any  race. 

Man  may  have  existed  a  million  years,  more  or  less.  What  we 
know  of  the  race,  at  the  most,  is  the  history  of  a  few  thousand 
years — too  short  a  period  to  determine  man's  character  during  the 
process  of  evolution.  In  truth,  what  we  really  know  of  the  evolu- 
tion of  prehistoric  man  is  practically  zero.  What  some  pretend  to 
know  is  really  a  result  of  reasoning  backward,  assuming  as  a 
premise  the  very  point  to  be  proved,  and  this  is  the  way  it  is  done  : 
The  child  is  developed  thus  before  our  eyes,  therefore  the  race 
must  have  been  developed  thus  a  hundred  thousand  years  ago.  It 
is  assumed  that  the  individual  development  is  a  type  of  race  de- 
velopment ;  then  we  reason  backward  to  determine  how  the  race  was 
developed — a  very  unsatisfactory  way  of  reasoning.  But,  even  ad- 
mitting the  assumption,  the  whole  matter  is  too  vague  and  too  in- 
volved to  make  such  possible  process  of  evolution  a  practical  guide. 
If  the  every-day  observation  of  the  processes  of  education,  and  the 
study  of  the  child  every  day  with  us,  do  not  help  us  to  a  knowledge 
of  educational  principles,  I  think  it  will  be  quite  in  vain  to  seek 
those  principles  in  the  study  of  prehistoric  man.  It  is  true,  we 
know  there  were  cave-dwellers  somewhere  in  the  past,  who  with 
clubs  fought  wild  beasts,  broke  their  bones,  and  sucked  out  the 
marrow  ;  we  also  know  there  are  now  savages  that  take  scalps, 
hunt  heads,  roast  and  eat  their  enemies,  and  live  in  caves  or  under 
bent  trees.  If  we  are  to  follow  the  development  of  the  race,  these 
conditions  are  very  suggestive.  I  am  fully  of  the  opinion  that  we 
had  better  study  for  the  principles  of  education  among  things 
around  us,  instead  of  trying  to  find  them  in  the  Trenton  gravels,  or 
among  the  cave-dwellers,  or  lake-dwellers  of  southern  Europe. 

As  to  the  studies  that  should  be  taught  in  school,  I  am  unalterably 
fixed  in  the  opinion  that  those  studies  should  be  placed  before  the 
child  that  will  be  of  most  value  to  him  in  a  later  probable  environ- 
ment. Such  studies  will  give  him  the  best  discipline,  for  they  will 
habituate  him,  physically,  mentally,  and  morally,  to  that  line   of 


/ 


igO  APPENDIX. 

activity  which  meets  the  demands,  the  necessities,  of  his  coming 
life. 

5.  I  should  in  a  measure  say  no  to  (a),  {b),  and  {c).     There  must 
be  some  duplication,  just  as  there  must  be  duplication  in  splicing  a 
rope.     Indeed,  apperception  is  little  else  than  a  splicing,  a  correla- 
tion, an  interaction,  a  unifying  of  the  old  and  the  new.     I  think  the 
point  is  deeper  than  correlation,  it  is  really  a  question  of  the  unifica- ! 
tion  of  knowledge.     It  is  finding  some  common  characteristics  of 
knowledge,  so  that  all  knowing  may  be  made  one.     Correlation  isi 
the  process  toward  unification,  a  process  seldom  adopted  by  de-* 
veloped  minds,  probably  the  highest  process  of  which  the  intellect " 
is  capable.    By  this  correlation  and  perception  of  common  properties 
or  factors  have  been  made  all,  or  nearly  all,   the  discoveries  that 
have  created  science  and  extended  the  bounds  of  knowledge.     But 
it  is  a  late  process,  and  should  be  used  with  great  care  in  elemen- 
tary schools.      I  do  not  see  how  correlation  will  eliminate  non- 
essentials. 

II.  Time  should  be  assigned  for  each  subject,  this  beyond  any 
shadow  of  doubt.  The  contrary  opinion  has  been  in  part  responsible 
for  overloading  our  courses  of  study  for  elementary  schools.  It  has 
seemed  to  be  assumed  that  by  using  the  term  "  mathematics  "  to 
include  arithmetic,  algebra,  and  geometry,  the  study  of  these  sub- 
jects has  been  simplified — a  most  fallacious  assumption.  I  wish  to 
express  the  opinion  with  more  force  than  I  can  express  it,  that  every 
subject  and  every  material  point  in  every  subject  taught  must  at 
some  time  be  made  a  specialty  in  elementary  schools.  No  correla- 
tion can  take  the  place  of  special  work.  It  appears  to  me  a  mad 
fallacy  that  the  implements  of  learning,  reading,  penmanship,  draw- 
ing, in  short,  expression,  are  mere  incident,  to  be  learned  inciden- 
tally in  the  study  of  nature.  I  concede  that,  having  gained  a  fair 
knowledge  of  the  implements,  there  comes  a  large  increase  of  skill 
in  their  use.  Must  a  man  never  learn  to  load  a  gun  until  he  sees 
the  game  ?  or  shall  he  never  study  an  engine  until  he  is  to  drive  an 
express  train  ? 

Besides,  the  implements  of  knowledge  are  as  real,  as  much 
subjects  of  thought,  as  nature  itself  ;  indeed,  in  any  wide  view  the 
implements  of  knowledge  are  a  part  of  nature,  as  man  is  a  part  of 
nature.  Words,  numbers,  pictures,  actions,  are  as  real  things  as  trees, 
flowers,  or  rocks  ;  and  as  such  they  are  subjects  of  special  study. 
To  my  mind,  the  very  purpose,  end,  and  aim  of  the  school  is  to  do 
special  work  in  preparation  of  the  individual  for  probable  condi- 
tions he  is  to  meet  in  future  life  ;  hence  education  in  school, 
especially  in  an  elementary  school,  must  deal  largely  with  the  tools 
of  knowledge,  as  well  as  with  the  knowledge  to  gain  which  these 
tools  are  used.  Therefore,  I  conclude,  there  is  no  gain  in  calling 
geography,  botany,  zoology,  mineralogy,  physics,  and  physiology 
*'  nature  studies  "  or  "  elementary  science,"  or  in  correlating  them 
as  such  ;  the  mind  will  not  be  so  cheated  into  knowledge.  I  must 
believe  that  mere  theorists,  men  who  have  never  tried  their  own 
theories,  who  have  quite  false  views  of  the  purpose  of  a  school,  are 
the  men  who  have  instigated  this  most  mischievous  folly. 


ON   CORRELATION   OF  STUDIES.  I9I 

1.3.  This  means  the  basis  of  a  course  of  study.  Whatever  we 
may  determine  will  be  a  matter  of  opinion,  and  will  be  changed 
with  changing  conditions.  The  probability  is  that  no  one  really 
knows  what  are  the  topics  that  it  would  be  best  to  introduce  into 
our  schools.  I  may  say,  give  time  to  do  well  what  is  undertaken. 
Take  those  topics  that  will  be  of  use  to  the  pupil  in  later  life. 
Never  study  anything  for  its  disciplinary  effects  only.  DiscipHne, 
like  character,  is  lost  by  seeking.  Study  thoroughly  what  will  be 
most  useful,  and  that  study  will  inevitably  give  the  best  discipline. 

14.  I  think  it  wise  to  make  some  difference,  especially  in  the 
studies  of  those  who  expect  to  take  a  course  in  college  or  in  some 
technical  school.  Some  of  the  more  intricate  facts  of  elementary 
studies  may  be  omitted.  These  problems  of  the  elementary  school 
will  be  mastered  with  little  time  and  effort  in  the  high  school. 
With  such  pupils  a  saving  of  time  might  be  made  by  waiting  until 
the  mind  has  grown.  With  many  subjects  special  effort  must  be 
made,  for  practical  reasons,  to  impress  upon  the  minds  of  children 
who  leave  school  early  what  they  would  easily  grasp  if  we  could 
wait  for  them. 

17.  I  know  no  other  principle  than  that  the  work  of  the  grade 
shall  be  fairly  completed.  There  may  be  some  exceptions  to  a  rule 
based  upon  this  principle.  It  may  happen  from  some  peculiarity 
that  the  child  fails  in  one  study  ;  in  this  case  he  should  not  be 
detained,  but  sent  forward  to  get  what  he  can.  It  sometimes  hap- 
pens that  a  promotion  will  awaken  in  a  lazy  or  discouraged  child 
renewed  activity  ;  then  promotion  should  be  tried.  Sometimes 
promotion  acts  like  a  change  of  diet,  creating  a  new  appetite  for 
work  or  knowledge  ;  then  try  it.  Capable  children  should  have  the 
opportunity  of  doing  their  work  in  less  time  and  be  promoted 
accordingly. 

In  clear  cases,  which  should  include  sixty  or  seventy  per  cent,  of 
the  class,  the  teacher  should  make  the  determination.  Where  there 
is  doubt,  an  oral  or  written  examination  by  the  principal,  together 
with  the  judgment  of  the  teacher,  should  determine. 

William  A.  Mowry,  Hyde  Park,  Mass. 

I.  This  question  involves  some  very  important  considerations,  and 
should  be  answered  with  care.  It  is  well  known  that  but  a  small 
percentage  of  the  pupils  who  finish  the  grammar-school  (or  elemen- 
tary) course  of  study  go  on  to  the  high-school  (or  secondary) 
course.  If  the  elementary  course  nominally  ended  two  years  earlier, 
it  is  apparently  certain  that  a  large  number  of  those  who  now 
manage  to  complete  the  eight  or  nine  years'  course  would  end  their 
school-days  with  the  completion  of  the  elementary  course  at  the  end 
of  the  six  years,  thereby  losing  two  valuable  years  of  important 
school  work.  Such  a  result  would  prove  inevitably  a  serious  loss  to 
the  country. 

But  it  is  claimed  that  much  valuable  time  may  be  gained  by 
beginning  the  high  school  (or  secondary)  work  earlier.  There  are 
two  sides  to  this  question.     If  this  secondary  work  is  introduced 


192  APPENDIX. 

too  early,  it  must  be  with  great  loss  of  thoroughness  and  accuracy  in 
the  elementary  studies,  which  are  quite  as  important  as  the  studies 
thus  introduced.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  it  is  shown  to  be  desirable, 
as  doubtless  it  may  be,  to  introduce  elementary  algebra,  geometry, 
and  more  nature  study  in  the  later  years  of  the  elementary  course, 
it  surely  is  not  necessary  to  transfer  the  pupils  from  the  ordinary 
routine  of  grammar-school  work  to  the  different  conditions  of  the 
high  school  in  order  to  accomplish  this  simple  purpose.  These 
studies  can  easily  be  correlated  with  arithmetic  and  nature  study 
already  in  the  elementary  curriculum,  while  the  groundwork  in  the 
entire  course  of  elementary  studies  is  being  done  with  that  thorough- 
ness and  care  which  are  so  important  to  prepare  the  youthful  minds 
for  closer  study  and  more  self-reliant  work  in  the  higher  grade. 

Another  point  presents  itself  just  here.  The  question  assumes 
that  the  "elementary  "  course  is  "  at  present  "  eight  years.  This  is 
true  in  some  parts  of  the  country.  In  other  sections,  where  the 
schools  are  equally  good  and  results  attained  equally  satisfactory, 
the  course  is  ni7ie  years. 

I  apprehend  that  the  difference  is  mainly  this  :  Where  the 
course  is  laid  down  for  nine  years,  many  pupils  will  be  promoted 
more  rapidly,  and  so  will  complete  the  course  in  eight,  seven,  six, 
and  possibly,  in  rare  instances,  in  five  years.  On  the  other  hand, 
where  the  course  is  laid  down  for  eight  years,  some,  perhaps  many, 
dull  pupils  will  be  unable  to  keep  pace,  and  hence,  not  being  "  pro- 
moted," will  drop  back  and  take  nine  years.  For  myself,  judging 
from  a  large  experience  and  a  wide  observation  at  the  East  and  at 
the  West,  I  incline  to  the  nine-years'  course  rather  than  the  eight- 
years'.  But  it  should  be  the  constant  aim  of  the  teachers  to  push 
the  bright  ones  along  faster.  It  is  better  to  promote  quick  pupils 
faster  than  is  laid  down,  than  to  drop  back  the  dull  ones  for  a 
longer  course. 

By  reference  to  the  paper  by  Dr.  Huling,  of  Cambridge,  it  will  be 
seen  that  he  prefers  nine  years  for  the  elementary  and  four  for  the 
secondary  course. 

Dr.  Frank  A.  Hill,  secretary  of  the  Massachusetts  Board  of 
Education,  writes  me  :  "I  incline  to  an  elementary  course  of  nine 
years.  While  theoretically  there  should  be  no  break  between  the 
grammar  and  the  high,  still,  under  Massachusetts  conditions,  there 
is  such  a  break;  that  is,  large  numbers  of  pupils  incline  to  close 
their  public-school  course  at  the  end  of  the  grammar-school  course, 
and  this  is  a  pretty  strong  argument  for  keeping  that  course  a  pro- 
longed one,  as  at  present.  I  believe  it  feasible  to  shorten  this 
course  for  the  brighter  pupils  who  wish  to  enter  the  high  school 
earlier,  as  is  done  in  the  city  of  Cambridge.  1  believe,  further,  that 
it  is  possible,  through  the  so-called  '  enrichment '  of  the  grammar- 
school  course,  to  make  the  secondary  course  dip  down  into  the 
grammar  school  in  such  a  way  as  practically  to  extend  its  length." 

2.  Doubtless  each  of  these  studies  has  a  distinct  pedagogical 
value.  Much  may  be  said  to  show  how  each  of  them  operates  to 
unfold  and  develop  the  child's  mind,  but  it  is  evidently  too  early 
yet  in  our  study  of  child-mind  to  weigh  and  measure  with  accuracy 


ON   CORRELATION  OF  STUDIES.  I93 

these  several  branches,  and  draw  the  conclusion  that  one  gives  two 
pounds  of  discipline  while  another  gives  but  one  pound,  or  that  one 
furnishes  an  expansive  power  of  two  meters,  while  the  influence  of 
the  others  is  only  to  the  extent  of  one  meter. 

Just  here,  however,  as  bearing  on  this  question  rather  than  any  of 
the  others,  I  beg  to  introduce  some  valuable  suggestions  from  one 
of  the  most  careful,  reliable,  and  successful  educators  of  New  Eng- 
land.    He  says  : 

"  It  seems  to  me  there  are  six  lines  of  work  that  grow  out  of  the 
child's  twofold  environment  of  nature  and  man.  Each  line  has  its 
own  logical  development  from  natural  approaches.  These  six  are 
in  many  cases  closely  related  at  certain  points,  and  that  relation 
should  be  most  plainly  shown, 

^'(i)   Physical  development. 

"(2)  Mathematical  exactness — numbers. 

"  (3)  Scientific  phenomena — science. 

"  (4)   Geography. 

"  (5)  History. 

"(6)  Literature. 

"  I  cannot  see  how  any  one  of  these  can  be  so  absorbed  in  the 
others  as  to  disappear  from  the  programme.     Each  has  its  own  line 
of  development.     They  touch  each  other  at  a  great  many  points,, 
and  illumme  each  other  at  those  points. 

"Aside  from  these  is  the  whole  matter  of  expression,  which  may  be 
taught  by  specific  drill  along  with  each  line  above,  as  the  means  of 
expression  peculiar  to  the  given  line.  It  seems  wiser  to  associate 
the  drill  in  expression  with  each  line  rather  than  to  have  an  isolated 
drill  out  of  connection.  We  find  most  of  our  failures  in  expression  due 
to  this  isolation  and  consequent  lack  of  appreciation  at  the  right  time. 

*'  It  is  not  necessary  that  each  line  come  in  the  programme  each 
day,  but  it  will  give  the  teacher  time  enough  on  each  line  to  consider 
it  thoroughly,  to  show  its  relation  to  the  other  allied  lines,  and  to 
drill  on  the  different  modes  of  expression.  This  is  especially  true 
in  the  grammar  grades.  In  this  the  reading,  writing,  spelling,  lan- 
guage, drawing,  etc.,  will  come  in  their  connection,  and  receive  much 
more  drill  than  they  can  get  otherwise.  If  from  time  to  time  special 
exercises  in  ^ny  form  are  needed,  they  can  be  taken  more  under- 
standingly. 

"  There  are  two  correlations  required — one  of  the  *  content '  sub- 
jects— e.  g.,  relation  of  geography  to  history,  not  trying  to  teach  one 
from  the  other  which  is  abnormal ;  the  other  of  the  expression  to 
the  subject  to  be  expressed — e.  g  ,  spelling  to  geography,  to  his- 
tory, to  literature,  etc.,  a  language  exercise  to  history,  etc.,  drawing 
to  science,  etc. 

"The  disconnected  teaching  of  the  '  content '  subjects,  and  espe- 
cially the  separation  of  the  expression  and  content  subjects,  must 
be  overcome  by  some  arrangement  whereby  the  teacher  is  to  have 
lime  to  do  this  correlating." 

3.  Manual  training — at  least  so  far  as  sloyd,  sewing,  and  cook- 
ing— should  be  taught  in  the  upper  grades  only  of  the  eight  or  nine 
years  in  the  elementary  school  curriculum.     Physics,  to  some  extent, 


194  APPENDIX. 

should  be  taught,  especially  in  the  higher  grades.  Music  should 
find  a  place  in  all  the  grades,  for  reasons  too  well  known  to  be 
repeated  here.  Physiology  (including  the  effects  of  stimulants  and 
narcotics)  should  be  taught  in  all  grades.  This  subject,  too,  has 
been  so  fully  discussed  as  to  need  no  argument  here.  Moreover,  it 
is  by  law  made  mandatory  in  nearly  all  the  States.  Latin  or  a 
modern  language  may  be  taught  to  an  elective  class  in  the  higher 
grades  of  the  grammar-school  course.  This  would  be  in  the  inter- 
est of  those  who  propose  to  go  on  to  the  high  school. 

9.  The  general  tendency  is  to  make  the  recitation  periods  too 
long  in  all  grades  of  elementary  schools.  In  one  of  the  best  gram- 
mar schools  in  Boston,  I  was  surprised  lately  to  find,  in  grades  from 
six  to  nine,  periods  for  a  single  recitation  from  fifty  minutes  to 
an  hour  and  a  quarter. 

In  my  judgment — and  this  opinion  is  ratified  by  some  of  the  best 
educational  minds  in  the  country — in  the  primary  grades  the  atten- 
tion of  the  children  should  not  be  held  to  one  subject  for  more  than 
twenty  minutes,  and  in  the  grammar  grades  for  not  more  than  from 
thirty  to  forty  minutes,  the  latter  time  applying  only  to  pupils  in 
the  eighth  and  ninth  grades. 

17.  Promotion  should  not  be  determined  by  special  examinations 
or  by  a  series  of  examinations.  The  important  question  to  be 
asked  is — not  is  he  an  excellent  scholar,  but  is  he  qualified  to 
appreciate  and  profit  by  the  studies  of  the  next  grade  higher.  The 
main  point  to  be  decided  is  what  the  best  interests  of  this  individual 
pupil  demand.  Can  he  pursue  the  studies  of  the  next  grade  to 
advantage  ?  If  so,  he  should  be  advanced.  This  should  be  deter- 
mined primarily  by  the  opinion  of  the  individual  teacher,  subject 
to  revision  by  the  principal,  and  the  approval  of  the  supervisor. 

Colonel  Francis  W.  Parker,  Principal  of  the 

Cook  County  Normal  School,  Englewood,  111. 

1.  To  my  mind,  it  makes  no  difference  in  regard  to  the  division 
in  time,  whether  there  should  be  eight  years  and  four  years,  or  six 
and  six  years.  The  work  should  be  organically  related  from  the 
kindergarten,  including  secondary  education.  In  other  words, 
there  should  be  no  break  in  the  work  ;  a  pupil  should  go  from  the 
eighth  grade  to  the  high  school,  and  continue  that  work  which  he 
has  already  begun. 

2.  In  a  general  answer,  I  should  say  that  no  subject  in  itself  has 
a  distinct  pedagogical  value.  The  value  of  any  subject  is  in  rela- 
tion to  all  other  subjects. 

3.  This  seems  to  be  a  very  much  mixed-up  question.  I  should 
certainly  have  manual  training  in  all  grades  of  school,  from  the 
kindergarten  to  the  university.  I  should  also  have  physical  culture 
and  music.  Science  should  be  taught  from  the  first  grade  on 
through  all  grades.  I  am  not  prepared  to  say  whether  Latin 
should  be  taught  in  the  grammar  grades  or  not.  At  present,  I  do 
not  think  it  advisable  to  introduce  Latin  until  the  work  in  our 
schools  is  more  pedagogical  than  now. 


ON   CORRELATION   OF   STUDIES.  I95 

• 

4.  Sequence  of  topics  should  always  be  adapted  to  the  powers  of 
the  child.  The  development  of  the  child  should  follow  the  gen- 
eral development  of  the  race,  minus  obstructions.  I  do  not  under- 
stand the  last  question  in  No.  4. 

5.  All  education  is  to  develop  character,  and  character  is  intrin- 
sically ethical. 

6.  7,  8.  It  is  possible  to  unite  and  correlate  all  the  studies  of  the 
elementary  school. 

9.  The  power  of  attention  on  the  part  of  a  class  should  deter- 
mine the  length  of  a  recitation. 

TO.  All  subjects  of  study  should  be  introduced  into  the  primary 
grades  and  continued  throughout  the  eight  years. 

II.  Cannot  answer  this  question,  as  experience  in  the  subject  of 
concentration  is  now  altogether  too  limited  to  make  special  divisions 
of  time. 

12  and  13.  Same  answer. 

14.  All  pupils  should  be  educated^  whether  they  stay  in  school  a 
week  or  fifteen  years.     All  pupils  should  have  the  same  subjects. 

15.  The  best  method  is  not  yet  known. 

16.  There  should  be  no  special  departmental  work  in  the  eight- 
years'  course,  and  very  little  in  the  high-school  course. 

17.  Ability  to  work.     The  teacher  should  determine. 


John  T.  Prince,  Agent  of  the  State  Board  of  Education, 

Boston,  Mass. 

3.  A  widely  extended  curriculum  seems  to  me  desirable  for  the 
elementary  schools,  so  as  to  cultivate  a  "  many-sided  interest  "  and 
to  assist  in  a  harmonious  development  of  the  mental  powers.  But 
to  avoid  superficialness,  it  is  important  that  a  careful  selection  of 
topics  be  made  (principal  types  being  emphasized)  and  that  a  cor- 
relation of  topics  and  subjects  be  made.  This  correlation  should 
be  made  in  groups  arranged  and  taught  according  to  natural 
relations.  An  attempt  to  correlate  all  subjects  leads  to  a  forced 
and  unnatural  association  and  consequent  loss  of  mental  energy. 

7.  The  groups  of  subjects  (not  counting  music,  manual  training, 
and  physical  culture)  are  : 

I.  ( I )  Nature  study,  including  the  elements  of  physical  geography, 
botany,  zoology,  mineralogy,  physics,  and  physiology  ;  (2)  mathe- 
matics, including  arithmetic,  inventional  geometry,  and  the  elements 
of  algebra. 

II.  (i)  Descriptive  geography  ;  (2)  history  ;  (3)  civil  govern- 
ment. 

III.  Language,  including  drawing,  reading,  spelling,  penmanship, 
grammar,  elements  of  logic  and  rhetoric,  composition,  and  one 
foreign  language. 

Correlation  of  subjects  within  each  group  should  be  as  complete 
as  possible,  and  the  correlation  of  drawing,  reading,  and  composition 
with  all  other  subjects  should  also  be  close  and  continuous. 

Specialization  by  departmental  instruction  may  be  made  accord- 


196  APPENDIX. 

ing  to  the  correlated  groups,  a  special  teacher  being  given  a  group 
of  subjects  in  each  of  several  grades. 

Thus,  with  teachers  trained  for  their  profession,  there  would  be 
in  my  opinion  a  wise  treatment  of  three  subjects  of  pedagogy  now 
attracting  much  attention  ;  viz., 

Extension  of  the  curriculum,  departmental  instruction,  and  cor- 
relation of  studies. 

J.  W.  Stearns,  Professor  of  Pedagogy, 

University  of  Wisconsin,  Madison,  Wis. 

I.  To  the  schools  of  large  cities  the  question  is  unimportant,  but 
to  smaller  places  the  present  division  is  most  advantageous,  as  it 
permits  a  difference  of  management  with  pupils  above  fourteen,  who 
ought  to  be  separated  from  those  younger  in  order  to  permit  this. 

3.  Manual  training  for  the  muscular  correlation  and  support  of 
intellectual  training  in  realities  ;  music  and  art  for  emotional  refine- 
ment ;  physics,  because  high-school  science  cannot  be  mastered  as 
it  should  be  without  elementary  training  of  this  sort,  I  do  not 
believe  the  mind  mature  enough  to  profit  by  classical  training  as 
now  pursued  until  high-school  age.  A  modern  language  by  a  so- 
called  "natural  method  "  might  be  useful. 

17.  The  real  interests  of  the  individual  pupil.  These  must  be 
determined  by  (i)  opinion  of  teachers,  (2)  written  tests.  The  tests 
should  be  prepared  by  teachers,  and  revised  by  superintendent,  but 
can  be  satisfactory  only  when  approved  by  both. 

S.  G.  Williams,  Professor  of  Pedagogy , 

Cornell  University,  Ithaca,  N.  Y. 

[On  behalf  of  a  committee  consisting  of  the  superintendent 
of  the  schools  of  Ithaca,  N.  Y.,  the  principal  of  the  high 
school,  and  two  teachers  in  elementary  schools.] 

I.  With  regard  to  the  first  question  we  would  recommend  that 
the  elementary  course  should  at  first  be  seven  years  and  the  high 
school  five  ;  but  four  of  us  are  of  the  opinion  that  where  any  lan- 
guage other  than  the  vernacular  is  to  be  undertaken  it  is  desirable 
that  it  should  be  begun  as  early  as  the  twelfth  year  of  age. 

9.  The  committee  as  a  whole  would  recommend  that  the  length 
of  recitation  periods  should  be  fifteen  minutes  for  the  firrt  school 
year,  twenty  minutes  for  the  second,  twenty-five  minutes  for  the 
third  and  fourth  years,  thirty  minutes  for  the  fifth  and  sixth  years, 
and  forty  minutes  for  any  added  years  ;  for  the  reason  that  the  con- 
tinuance of  active  interest  in  the  young  requires  frequent  change 
of  impression,  whilst  as  age  advances  such  changes  need  be  less 
frequent. 

Personally,  I  would  say  that  I  observed  in  German  schools  that 

^^  the  instructio7i  periods  were  of  the  same  length  for  children  of  six 

years  as  for  t$ose  of   fourteen,  and  that,  too,  without   apparent 


ON   CORRELATION   OF   STUDIES.  1 97 

flagging  of  attention.  I  thought  this  sustained  attention  was  due 
to  the  frequent  change  in  the  nature  of  the  operations  within  the 
hour,  questioning  alternately  with  oral  instruction,  with  slate  and 
blackboard  work,  with  gymnastic  movements,  and  with  singing. 
Might  it  not  be  profitable  so  to  modify  much  of  the  work  in  ele- 
mentary schools  as  to  have  more  instruction  and  less  recitation  of 
lessons,  prepared  too  often  without  right  ideas  how  to  study  ?  In 
this  way  the  work  of  the  pupils  would  be  wholly  guided  and  inspired 
by  the  teacher  during  all  the  hours  of  school,  thus  making  unneces- 
sary the  so-called  busy  work^  which  too  often  is  mere  trifling,  habit- 
uating children  to  saunter. 

1 1.  Time  should  be  assigned  only  for  the  groups  named  in  No.  7. 

14.  After  some  comparison  of  views,  the  committee  unanimously 
agreed  that  the  instruction  of  all  pupils  should  be  the  same,  what- 
ever their  supposed  destination. 

16.  The  question  of  specialization  of  teaching  in  the  elementary 
schools  was  felt  to  present  much  difficulty.  If  the  only  idea  is  to 
gain  the  greatest  amount  of  knowledge  in  a  given  time,  possibly  the 
highly  trained  specialist  would  be  most  effective  ;  but  if  the  shaping 
of  character  and  the  formation  of  good  habits  is  made  the  chief 
aim,  the  steady  influence  of  a  high-toned  teacher  would  seem  to  be 
very  important,  at  least  for  the  very  plastic  period  from  six  to  ten 
years  of  age. 

17.  The  committee  were  unanimously  of  the  opinion  that  the 
principle  on  which  promotions  should  be  made  should  be  compe- 
tency to  do  the  work  of  the  next  higher  grade  satisfactorily.  As  to 
the  manner  in  which  this  competency  should  be  determined,  the 
favorite  opinion  seemed  to  be  that  it  should  be  by  examinations 
conducted  by  the  teachers  into  whose  grades  pupils  aspire  to  enter. 

The  chairman  of  the  committee,  however,  was  inclined  to  favor  a 
plan  outlined  in  Circular  No.  7,  1891,  of  the  Bureau  of  Education. 


APPENDIX    III 

OPINIONS   SUBMITTED   TO   THE   SUB-COMMITTEE  ON    THE 
ORGANIZATION    OF    CITY   SCHOOL   SYSTEMS 

The  following  are  the  questions  in  answer  to  which  the 
opinions  were  written : 

1.  Should  there  be  a  board  of  education,  or  a  commissioner 
with  an  advisory  council  ? 

2.  If  a  commissioner,  should  he  be  elected  by  the  people,  or 
appointed  by  the  mayor,  or  selected  in  some  other  way  ? 

3.  What  should  be  his  powers  and  duties? 

4.  If  a  board  of  education,  of  how  many  members  should  it 
consist  ? 

5.  Should  the  members  be  elected,  or  appointed  ?  From 
the  city  at  large,  or  to  represent  districts? 

.  6.  Should  the  members  be  elected  in  equal  numbers  from 
the  two  great  political  parties,  or  can  any  other  device  be  sug- 
gested to  eliminate  politics  from  school  administration  ? 

7.  By  what  authority  should  the  superintendent  of  schools 
be  elected  or  appointed,  and  for  what  term  ? 

8.  What  should  be  the  qualifications  of  a  city  superintend- 
ent of  schools? 

9.  Should  the  city  superintendent  owe  his  appointment 
directly  or  indirectly  to  the  State  educational  authorities  and 
be  responsible  to  them  rather  than  to  the  local  authorities? 

10.  In  whom  should  be  vested  the  authority  to  license 
teachers  ?     To  cancel  licenses  for  cause  ? 

11.  In  whom  should  be  vested  the  power  to  appoint  teach- 
ers?    In  whom  the  power  to  discharge  teachers? 

12.  Supposing  teachers  appointed  to  a  school,  who  should 
have  the  power  to  assign  them  to  grades  or  classes? 

13.  Should  the  principle  of  competitive  examination  be 
introduced  in  determining  promotions  to  positions  of  greater 
responsibility  or  emolument? 

198 


ON  ORGANIZATION  OF  CITY   SCHOOLS.  1 99 

14.  How  should  the  duties  of  superintendents  on  the  one 
hand  and  of  principals  on  the  other  in  the  supervision  of 
methods  and  of  teaching  be  defined  ? 

15.  By  whom  should  the  course  of  study  be  made? 

16.  By  whom  should  text-books  be  selected  ? 

17.  By  whom  should  promotions  be  made? 

18.  By  whom  should  disputes  between  parents  and  the 
teaching  force  be  settled  ? 

19.  By  whom  should  a  compulsory  education  law  be 
enforced  ? 


2CX)  APPENDIX. 


C.  W.  Bardeen,  Editor  of  the  ''  School  Bulletin'' 

Syracuse,  N.  Y. 

1.  I  should  prefer  a  board  of  education. 

2.  If  a  commissioner,  he  should  unquestionably  be  appointed. 

3.  I  do  not  see  in  what  respect  the  Cleveland  plan  could  be 
improved. 

4.  Not  to  exceed  seven. 

5.  Most  emphatically  appointed,  and  most,  most  emphatically 
from  the  city  at  large.     The  representative  system  is  pernicious. 

6.  There  is  no  board  so  partisan  as  a  non-partisan  board,  and  it 
has  been  a  failure  wherever  tried,  especially  in  Albany  and  Oswego. 
The  only  way  to  eliminate  politics  is  to  appoint  the  best  men, 
regardless  of  politics. 

7.  The  superintendent  should  be  appointed  by  the  board  of  edu- 
cation, and  the  appointment  should  be  permanent,  or  at  least  for  a 
period  of  not  less  than  five  years. 

8.  He  should  be  a  teacher  of  experience,  but  not  of  too  long 
experience,  as  that  is  apt  to  narrow.  He  should  be  a  man  of  broad 
and  recognized  common  sense,  a  man  among  men,  with  nothing  of 
the  pedagogue  about  him,  but  in  bearing  and  attire  and  manner 
able  to  meet  bankers  and  lawyers  and  other  prominent  men  as  a 
recognized  equal.  He  should  be  a  man  of  enthusiasm  and  earnest- 
ness, seeking  a  place  because  he  wants  to  make  the  schools  better, 
and  recognizing  the  office  as  his  great  opportunity  and  life-work. 
He  should  be  a  gentleman,  able  to  control  without  austerity  or 
harshness,  with  genuine  native  sympathy  for  both  pupils  and  teach- 
ers. There  are  many  other  qualifications,  but  if  they  were  all  enu- 
merated his  wings  would  sprout  and  he  would  fiy.  These  are  the 
most  essential. 

9.  I  question  whether  the  State  educational  authorities  can  judge 
of  the  needs  of  a  locality  so  well  as  the  local  authorities.  I  should 
prefer  appointment  of  the  superintendent  by  a  board  of  education 
appointed  by  the  mayor. 

10.  The  authority  to  license  and  to  appoint  teachers  should  never 
be  vested  in  the  same  person.  The  superintendent  should  have 
one  or  the  other,  and  I  think  it  is  better  he  should  have  the  appoint- 
ment ;  so  I  see  no  way  to  improve  upon  the  uniform  system  of 
examinations  of  the  State  of  New  York,  which  should  be  binding 
upon  every  city  as  well  as  every  country  district. 

11.  Both  should  be  vested  absolutely  in  the  superintendent. 

12.  The  principal,  subject  to  the  approval  of  the  superintendent. 

13.  Never.  A  competitive  examination  has  no  place  in  teaching. 
The  qualifications  of  a  teacher  can  never  be  estimated  by  an  exam- 
ination. Examinations  may  determine  who  is  unfit  to  teach,  but 
not  who  is  more  fit  to  teach  than  another,  or  where  one  is  best  fitted 
to  teach. 

14.  The  superintendents  should  lay  down  general  principles  of 
teaching  and  outlines  of  methods,  and  require  a  certain  amount  of 
progress  in  every  school.     Beyond  this,  considerable  latitude  should 


ON   ORGANIZATION   OF   CITY   SCHOOLS.  201 

be  left  to  the  principals,  and  individuality  encouraged,  so  far  as  it 
does  not  interfere  with  the  general  plan  of  education  in  the  city. 

15.  The  final  authority  should  be  vested  in  the  superintendent. 
He  will,  naturally,  be  assisted  by  the  principal. 

i6.  By  the  superintendent. 

17.  By  the  superintendent,  with  reference  to  the  board  of  educa- 
tion only  where  he  is  in  doubt  or  desires  their  moral  support. 

19.  By  the  school  officers  exclusively,  without  reference  to  the 
police.  It  seemed  to  me  that  Mr.  Seaver's  arguments  on  this  point, 
at  Richmond,  were  unanswerable. 

Earl  Barnes,  Professor  of  Education^ 

Leland  Stanford,  Jr.,  University,  Palo  Alto,  Cal. 

1.  I  believe  that  a  commissioner  with  an  advisory  council  is 
superior  to  a  board  of  education.  Centralized  authority  leads  to 
prompt  and  definite  action,  and  enables  the  people  to  locate  bad 
management. 

2.  I  do  not  think  the  commissioner  should  be  elected  by  the 
people,  as  this  necessarily  confines  the  selection  to  local  candidates. 
Neither  should  I  like  him  to  be  appointed  by  the  mayor.  I  should 
prefer  that  he  be  appointed  by  the  advisory  council  or  by  the  com- 
mon council  of  the  city. 

3.  It  seems  to  me  his  powers  and  duties  should  consist  in  a  gen- 
eral oversight  of  the  educational  interests  of  the  city,  the  selection 
of  the  superintendent  of  schools,  and  a  general  control  of  the  busi- 
ness side  of  the  school  department. 

7.  The  superintendent  of  schools  should  be  appointed  by  the 
school  commissioner  rather  than  by  the  mayor.  I  should  rather 
have  him  appointed  by  a  board  of  education  than  to  have  him 
elected. 

8.  In  the  first,  place,  he  should  be  a  well  man  with  a  good  physique 
and  a  strong  personality,  capable  of  easily  influencing  women  and 
children.  In  the  second  place,  he  should  be  thoroughly  versed  in 
the  best  pedagogic  thought  of  his  day.  Of  course  there  are  many 
other  things  desirable,  such  as  business  capacity,  general  knowledge 
of  economic  conditions,  and  so  on  and  so  on. 

9.  I  think  the  city  superintendent  should  be  responsible  to  the 
local  authorities. 

10.  The  authority  to  license,  teachers  I  should  place  in  the  hands 
of  a  considerable  board,  not  too  local  nor  too  general.  A  State 
board  with  a  uniform  examination  can  hardly  meet  the  require- 
ments of  backward  and  advanced  communities  within  its  borders. 
In  large  cities  I  would  have  a  special  board  of  examiners,  and  in 
smaller  cities  I  should  trust  to  the  county  board  examiners.  I 
would  give  the  superintendent  power  to  cancel  licenses  for  cause. 

11.  I  would  give  the  superintendent  power  to  appoint  and  dis- 
miss teachers. 

12.  It  seems  to  me  there  can  be  no  question  that  the  superin- 
tendent should  have  the  power  to  assign  teachers  to  their  grades 
or  classes. 


202  APPENDIX. 

13.  A  competitive  examination  on  the  basis  of  academic  knowl- 
edge does  not  seem  to  me  a  desirable  method  for  determining  pro- 
motions. If  a  competitive  examination  could  be  held  which  would 
cover  academic  knowledge,  professional  training,  and  actual  ability 
to  do,  then  I  should  say  it  would  be  a  good  thing. 

14.  The  superintendent  should  have  a  large  supervision  over 
methods  and  over  teaching,  but  he  should  be  generous  and  liberal 
enough  to  leave  all  principals  great  freedom  in  working  out  their 
own  problems.  It  seems  to  me.  he  ought  never  to  impose  a  rule  of 
method  upon  his  schools. 

15.  The  course  of  study  should  be  made  by  the  principals  and 
the  superintendent,  the  superintendent  having  first  called  the 
teachers  into  counsel  on  the  matter. 

17.  Promotions  should  be  made  on  the  judgment  of  the  grade 
teachers,  subject  to  the  veto  of  the  principal. 

18.  Disputes  between  parents  and  the  teaching  force  should  be 
settled  by  the  teacher  immediately  concerned,  with  the  right  of 
appeal  to  the  principal,  and  beyond  him  to  the  superintendent. 

Nicholas  Murray  B\3TI.y.k,  Professor  of  Philosophy  and 

Education^  Columbia  College,  New  York. 

There  should  be  a  board  of  education  or  school  commission 
appointed  by  the  mayor,  without  confirmation  by  the  common 
council  or  any  other  body.  This  board  should  not  be  large.  A 
board  of  ten  or  twelve  members  is  large  enough  to  administer  the 
school  system  of  the  city  of  New  York.  The  members  should  be 
appointed  from  the  city  at  large,  without  any  regard  to  wards  or 
electoral  districts.  They  should  serve  for  a  considerable  term,  say 
five  years,  and  not  more  than  two  members  should  go  out  of  office 
in  any  one  year.  Under  an  ideal  plan  the  members  of  the  school 
board  should  be  appointed  without  regard  to  their  political  views, 
but  solely  because  of  their  fitness  for  the  office  ;  but,  in  the  present 
state  of  municipal  administration  in  America,  this  is  impossible.  I 
therefore  favor  limiting  the  choice  of  the  mayor  by  a  provision  to 
the  effect  that  not  more  than  one-half  of  the  members  of  the  board 
shall  belong  to  one  and  the  same  political  party. 

This  board  should  stand  in  the  same  relation  to  the  school  system 
that  boards  of  trustees  do  to  colleges  and  universities  ;  that  is, 
they  should  be  the  ultimate  source  qf  power,  and  should  represent 
the  public  policy  in  relation  to  school  matters.  They  should  make 
all  appropriations,  audit  all  bills,  and  make  all  of  the  major  appoint- 
ments. Under  the  latter  phrase  I  include  the  superintendent,  the 
assistant  superintendents  or  supervisors,  and  the  principals  of 
schools. 

All  action  taken  by  any  of  these  executive  officers  should  have 
the  full  authority  of  the  board,  but  this  authority  should  be  dele- 
gated by  a  by-law  or  rule,  and  not  be  called  for  in  e^^ery  matter  of 
detail. 

The  city  superintendent  of  schools  should  be  appointed  by  the 
school  board  to  serve  during  good  behavior  and  satisfactory  incum- 


ON   ORGANIZATION  OF  CITY   SCHOOLS.  203 

bency.  Despite  the  fact  that  there  have  been  in  our  experience 
admirable  superintendents  who  came  to  the  position  without  special 
education  and  training,  I  believe  that  there  is  a  danger  here  that  the 
country  cannot  afford  to  run  as  part  of  its  permanent  administrative 
policy.  I  therefore  favor  a  provision  that  would  limit  the  selection 
of  city  superintendents  to  men  who  have  had  either  a  college  educa- 
tion or  a  previous  successful  career  in  teaching  and  supervision. 
The  city  superintendent  should  owe  his  appointment  to  the  local 
beard  and  act  as  its  executive  officer.  Indirectly,  of  course,  he 
owes  his  election  to  the  State,  because  under  our  system  of  govern- 
ment that  is  the  final  authority  in  matters  of  educational  organiza- 
tion and  administration. 

A  board  (corresponding  to  the  faculty  of  a  college  or  university) 
made  up  of  the  superintendent  and  the  assistant  superintendents  or 
supervisors  should  license,  appoint,  cancel  licenses  for  cause,  and 
discharge  all  teachers.  The  appointments  should  be  made  from  a 
list  prepared  after  an  examination  set  by  this  board,  and  1  see  no 
objection  to  making  appointments  from  this  list  in  order  of  merit  as 
determined  by  that  examination.  It  should,  however,  be  borne  in 
mind,  that,  with  the  increasing  specialization  and  division  of  labor 
that  is  going  on  in  our  city  school  systems,  persons  of  various  and 
varied  qualifications  are  needed  in  the  schools.  1  here  should, 
therefore,  be  vested  in  this  board  full  power  to  appoint  to  a  given 
post  the  person  that  they  deem  best  fitted  to  fill  the  post,  whether 
or  not  that  person  be  at  the  head  of  the  competitive  list.  After 
teachers  have  been  appointed  to  a  school  the  principal  should  have 
full  authority  to  assign  them  to  grades  or  classes.  In  case  of  alleged 
injustice  or  dissatisfaction,  there  should  be  the  right  of  appeal  to  the 
superintendent. 

Your  thirteenth  question  I  have  partially  answered  above.  It  is 
very  necessary,  in  selecting  persons  for  promotion  by  competitive 
examination,  to  bear  in  mind  the  well-demonstrated  fact  that  suc- 
cess in  one  position  is  not  necessarily  an  assurance  of  capability  to 
fill  another  and  higher  position.  It  is  possible,  however,  by  keeping 
careful  r'ecords  of  work  done,  to  discover  who  among  the  persons 
holding  subordinate  posts  possess  the  necessary  intelligence  and 
directive  power  to  fill  satisfactorily  higher  and  more  responsible 
positions.  If  this  element  in  the  case  be  kept  clearly  in  mind,  then 
I  am  in  favor  of  competitive  examinations  for  promotion.  I  com- 
mend to  your  committee  the  consideration,  with  reference  to  this 
point,  of  the  system  devised  for  the  Department  of  the  Interior  at 
Washington  by  the  present  Commissioner  of  Education. 

The  board  above  referred  to  (not  the  school  board)  should  make 
the  course  of  study  and  select  the  text-books  that  may  be  used  in 
the  schools. 

Promotions  should  be  made  by  the  principal  of  each  school. 

Disputes  between  parents  and  the  teaching  force  should  be  settled 
by  the  superintendent. 

The  compulsory  education  law  should  be  enforced  by  an  officer 
of  the  school  board  especially  appointed  for  the  purpose,  and  sub- 
ject to  the  jurisdiction  of  the  superintendent. 


204  APPENDIX. 

Permit  me  to  add  some  important  recommendations  that  lie  out- 
side of  the  questions  you  have  submitted  to  me. 

One  of  these  relates  to  financial  matters.  It  is  easy  enough  to 
ascertain  from  the  experience  of  a  given  community  what  percent- 
age or  proportion  of  the  average  assessed  value  of  the  property  of  j 
that  community  is  necessary  in  order  to  sustain  a  school  system.  ^ 
This  percentage  or  proportion  having  been  determined  upon,  it 
should  be  placed  at  the  disposal  of  the  school  board  by  law  and 
without  the  intervention  of  a  common  council  or  any  other  board. 
In  this  way  the  resources  of  the  school  board  will  expand  naturally 
as  the  city  increases  in  wealth  and  population,  and  many  of  the  dif- 
ficulties that  school  boards  now  labor  under  will  be  removed.  The 
money  received  from  this  source  should  be  devoted  to  what  I  call 
current  expenses.  All  money  needed  for  permanent  account,  such 
as  the  acquisition  of  land  and  the  erection  of  school  buildings, 
should  be  raised  in  addition  to  the  above  sum  by  the  issue  of  bonds. 
The  mode  in  which  bonds  may  be  issued  is  well  understood  through- 
out the  United  States,  and  the  practice,  while  varied  in  detail,  is 
uniform  in  principle. 

A  second  suggestion  I  deem  of  great  importance,  and  I  base  it 
upon  the  success  of  the  French  people  in  securing  counsel  and 
assistance  in  the  management  of  the  schools  from  the  teaching  force 
itself.  All  teachers  who  have  passed  the  probationary  period,  and 
are  serving  on  a  permanent  appointment,  should  be  ex  officio  mem- 
bers of  a  teachers'  council,  which  should  meet  regularly  for  the  dis- 
cussion of  questions  relating  to  text-books,  courses  of  study,  methods 
of  teaching,  and  so  on.  This  council  should  be  given  the  legal 
right  to  memorialize  the  board  of  superintendents  or  supervisors, 
and  should  elect  a  certain  number  of  representatives  to  sit  in  that 
board.  I  need  not  enlarge  on  the  great  advantages  that  will  follow 
from  giving  the  teachers  an  indirect  voice  in  the  matters  that 
directly  concern  them.  Such  a  policy  promotes  the  solidarity  of 
the  school  system,  and  tends  to  harmony  and  order  as  well  as  to 
increase  the  efficiency  of  the  teaching  force. 

Still  another  suggestion  is,  that  in  very  large  cities  the  care  of 
school  buildings  and  the  purchase  of  supplies  should  devolve  upon 
a  salaried  officer  appointed  by  the  school  board  for  that  purpose. 
In  smaller  cities  the  duties  of  such  an  officer  can  easily  be  devolved 
upon  the  secretary  of  the  school  board.  An  architect  for  the  plan- 
ning and  erection  of  school  buildings  will  naturally  be  a  third  per- 
manent executive  officer  in  the  largest  cities,  where  school  build-, 
ings  are  always  in  process  of  erection.  In  smaller  cities  this  will  not 
be  necessary,  and  as  buildings  are  needed  architects  can  be  specially 
employed  to  prepare  the  plans  and  to  supervise  the  construction. 

J.  M.  Carlisle,  State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction, 

Austin,  Tex. 

1.  There  should  be  both  a  board  of  education  and  a  commissioner 
with  advisory  council. 

2.  The  commissioner  should  be  elected  by  the  people. 


ON   ORGANIZATION   OF  CITY   SCHOOLS.  205 

3.  His  powers  and  duties  should  be  to  preside  at  meetings  of  the 
board  of  education  and  at  meetings  of  his  council,  to  superintend 
buildings  and  grounds,  to  appoint  committees  of  the  board  of  edu- 
cation, to  approve  or  veto  the  orders,  rules,  resolutions,  and  acts  of 
the  board  of  education,  to  make  estimates  of  expenditure,  submit 
recommendations  to  the  board  of  education,  and  to  exercise  gen- 
erally the  same  function  in  reference  to  the  board  of  education  and 
school  matters  that  the  mayor  exercises  in  reference  to  the  city 
council  and  the  interest  of  the  city  other  than  school  officers. 

4.  The  board  of  education  should  consist  of  not  less  than  five 
and  not  more  than  fifteen  members. 

5.  The  members  should  be  elected  from  the  city  at  large. 

6.  The  State  superintendent,  county  superintendent,  trustees  of 
county  districts,  members  of  city  boards  of  education,  should  all  be 
elected  on  the  same  day  throughout  the  State,  at  a  time  when  no  other 
officers,  except  judicial  officers,  are  elected. 

7.  The  city  superintendent  should  be  elected  by  the  advisory 
council  of  the  commissioner.  He  should  first  be  elected  for  a  term 
of  three  years,  and  to  continue  thereafter,  during  good  behavior, 
without  re-election. 

8.  The  superintendent  should  be  a  man  of  unquestioned  and 
superior  scholarship,  extensive  professional  training,  administrative 
ability,  approachability,  and  good  sense. 

9.  City  superintendent  should  be  required  to  hold  a  license  from 
the  State  superintendent. 

10.  The  city  superintendent  should  appoint  the  city  board  of 
examiners.  This  board  should  examine  teachers  and  report  to  the 
superintendent,  who  should  issue  licenses.  The  superintendent 
should  be  authorized  to  cancel  licenses  for  cause.       • 

11.  The  board  of  education  should  elect  teachers  from  a  re- 
stricted list  prepared  by  the  superintendent.  Teachers  should  be 
dismissed  for  cause  by  the  board. 

12.  The  principals  should  be  assigned  by  the  superintendent,  or 
elected  to  specific  principalships  by  the  board,  The  superintendent 
should  then  assign  a  sufficient  number  of  teachers  to  each  school, 
and  the  principal  should  assign  them  to  their  respective  grades, 
subject  to  the  approval  of  the  superintendent. 

13.  The  principle  of  competitive  examinations  being  essentially 
unsound  has  no  place  in  school  administration. 

14.  The  duties  of  superintendent,  principals,  and  teachers,  should 
be  defined  by  the  board  of  education. 

15.  The  course  of  study  should  be  made  by  the  superintendent, 
subject  to  the  approval  of  the  board  of  education. 

16.  Text-books  should  be  adopted  by  the  board  of  education. 

17.  Promotion  should  be  made  by  the  teacher,  subject  to  the 
approval  of  the  principal  and  the  superintendent. 

18.  Disputes  between  a  parent  and  a  teacher  should  be  decided 
in  the  first  place  by  the  teacher.  Appeal  should  lie  to  the  principal 
of  the  school,  and  from  him  to  the  superintendent,  and  thence  to 
the  board  of  education. 

19.  There  should  be  no  compulsory  education  law. 


2o6  APPENDIX. 

O.  T.  Corson,  State  Commissioner  of  Common  Schools , 

Columbus,  O. 

I.  It  is  my  opinion  that  the  schools  can  be  best  managed  by  a 
board  of  education  composed  of  from  three  to  seven  members  (de- 
pending upon  the  size  of  the  city)  elected  by  the  people  at  large. 
1  am  fully  convinced  that  this  board  should  have  upon  it  members 
of  the  two  leading  political  parties,  but  I  do  not  believe  that  it  is 
best  to  have  an  even  number  on  the  board,  half  selected  from  each 
political  party.  In  such  boards  the  tendency  is  to  divide  on  politi- 
cal lines  and  tie  upon  very  important  questions  relating  to  the 
management  of  the  schools.  The  object  should  be  to  elect  men  of 
such  breadth  of  mind  and  integrity  of  character  that  the  question 
of  politics  will  not  at  all  enter  into  the  management  of  the  schools. 

7,  8.  The  superfntendent  of  schools  should  be  elected  by  this  board 
of  education  for  a  term  not  to  exceed  three  years.  Such  a  super- 
intendent should  have  a  combination  of  scholarship  and  business 
tact.  He  should  have  been,  prior  to  his  election,  a  teacher  of  sev- 
eral years  of  experience  in  the  different  grades  of  school  work,  and 
thus  be  enabled  to  act  intelligently  in  his  selection  of  teachers,  and 
to  enter  into  hearty  sympathy  with  them  in  their  many  difficulties. 

9.  He  should  be  appointed  as  before  stated,  and  be  responsible  to 
the  members  of  the  board  of  education,  and  through  them  to  the 
people  by  whom  they  are  elected. 

10.  The  authority  to  license  teachers  should  be  vested  largely  in 
the  superintendent  of  schools  ;  but,  in  my  judgment,  he  should  not 
have  entire  control  in  this  matter.  This  authority  can  be  given  to 
him  by  making  him  a  member  of  the  city  board  of  examiners  under 
the  present  law  in  this  State.  This  board  should  both  license  teach- 
ers and  also  have  the  power  to  cancel  licenses  for  just  cause. 

II.  The  superintendent  should  be  consulted  in  the  appointment  of 
teachers,  and  should,  under  ordinary  circumstances,  be  permitted  to 
make  his  own  selections.  The  power  to  discharge  should  be  in  the 
hands  of  the  board,  the  members  of  which  should  always  be  ready 
to  act  promptly  upon  satisfactory  evidence  furnished  by  the  super- 
intendent that  a  teacher  was  unable  to  do  good  work. 

12.  The  superintendent  should  have  the  power  to  assign  teachers 
to  their  different  grades  after  they  have  been  selected. 

13.  "  Whether  the  principle  of  competitive  examination  should  be 
introduced  in  determining  promotions  to  positions  of  greater  re- 
sponsibility or  emolument,"  or  not,  depends  entirely  upon  what  is 
meant  by  examination.  If  the  examination  is  one  of  scholarship 
alone,  I  should  answer  no ;  if  it  means  the  broader  examination 
which  will  determine  general  ability  to  assume  greater  responsibil- 
ity, then  I  think  the  principle  a  correct  one. 

14.  It  is  my  firm  conviction  that  the  principals  of  the  different 
buildings  should  act  in  the  same  capacity  as  the  superintendents  of 
our  smaller  towns  and  cities.  They  should  thoroughly  inspect  the 
work  of  the  different  grades,  give  suggestions  to  teachers,  do  some 
teaching  themselves,  and  in  every  way  bring  up  the  general  stand- 
ing of  the  schools.     It  is  an  admitted  fact  that  some  of  the  best 


ON  ORGANIZATION  OF  CITY  SCHOOLS.  20/ 

schools  in  the  United  States  are  found  in  some  of  these  small  towns 
and  cities,  in  which  the  schools  are  under  the  control  of  an  active, 
enthusiastic  superintendent.  The  city  superintendent  should  then 
have  a  general  supervision  of  these  principals  or  assistant  superin- 
tendents. He  should  determine  very  largely  who  the  principals 
should  be,  hold  them  to  a  strict  accountability  for  the  success  of  the 
work  in  their  various  buildings,  and  consult  them  very  freely  regard- 
ing the  selection  of  teachers  who  are  to  work  with  them,  the  promo- 
tion of  pupils,  etc. 

15.  The  course  of  study  should  be  made  out  under  the  direction 
of  the  superintendent.  In  this  work  he  should  freely  consult  the 
teachers  of  the  various  grades  regarding  the  work  to  be  done,  and 
should  insist  that  no  special  work  should  be  permitted  to  interfere 
with  the  general  work  of  the  schools. 

16.  Text-books  should  be  selected  by  a  committee  composed  of 
teachers  and  members  of  the  board  of  education.  It  might  be  well 
to  have  two  of  the  best  teachers,  two  of  the  most  intelligent  mem- 
bers of  the  board,  with  the  superintendent  of  schools  as  chairman 
of  the  committee. 

17.  Promotions  cannot  be  justly  made  by  any  one  power.  Of 
course,  the  superintendent  should  decide  doubtful  cases  after  gain- 
ing all  the  information  possible,  or,  rather,  he  should  direct  princi- 
pals how  to  decide  in  such  cases.  Teachers  should  be  freely 
consulted  regarding  this  important  work  ;  not  only  the  teachers 
from  whom  the  pupils  are  to  be  promoted,  but  also  the  teachers  to 
whom  they  are  to  be  promoted.  While  pupils  should  be  given 
due  credit  for  the  regular  daily  work  of  the  school,  it  is  my  firm 
conviction  that  at  least  three  written  examinations  should  be  held 
each  year  in  all  grades  from  the  third  to  the  highest. 

18.  As  a  rule,  I  believe  that  disputes  between  parents  and  teach- 
ers can  be  settled  satisfactorily  without  appealing  to  either  princi- 
pals or  superintendent.  There  may  be  instances,  however,  when  it 
may  be  necessary  for  the  principal  to  settle  such  disputes  ;  there 
may  also  be  very  rare  instances  in  which  the  superintendent  should 
take  a  hand  in  the  settlement  of  the  difficulty;  and  there  may  be 
an  occasional  case  (there  should  be  very  few)  in  which  it  will  be 
necessary  for  the  board  of  education  to  act  upon  the  report  of 
their  committee  of  discipline,  after  having  carefully  investigated  the 
whole  difficulty. 

19.  The  compulsory  education  law  should  be  enforced  as  pro- 
vided in  the  Ohio  law.  One  or  more  truant  officers  should  be 
selected,  who  should  act  directly  under  the  supervision  of  the 
superintendent  and  principals  of  the  schools. 

Charles  W.  Eliot,  President  of  Harvard  University ^ 

Cambridge,  Mass. 

1, 4,  5.  The  central  governing  body  should  be  a  board  of  moderate 
size,  appointed  by  the  mayor.  The  number  of  members  should  not 
exceed  ten.  It  might  be  composed  of  ten  members  two  to  be  re- 
placed each  year,  or  of  seven  members  one  to  be  replaced  each 


208  APPENDIX. 

year,  retiring  members  to  be  eligible  for  a  second  term  and  no 
more.  The  members  should  receive  no  compensation.  In  this 
board  should  reside  the  ultimate  authority  over  everything  connected 
with  the  schools.  It  should  have  authority  to  appoint  such  agents, 
officers,  and  teachers  as  it  might  find  expedient,  and  to  assign  the 
duties  and  fix  the  salaries  of  all  persons  employed  in  the  school 
system. 

Its  principal  agents  should  be  a  superintendent,  a  business  man- 
ager, and  an  architect.  These  officers,  and  all  principals  or  head 
masters,  should  be  appointed  directly  by  the  board.  Although  all 
appointments,  regulations,  and  programmes  within  the  school  system 
should  have  the  authority  of  the  board,  the  board  should  be  em- 
powered to  delegate  portions  of  its  authority  to  its  agents  at  its 
discretion,  with  or  without  requiring  formal  approval  by  the  board 
of  its  agents'  action. 

The  pecuniary  resources  of  the  board  should  be  of  two  sorts  : 
(i)  for  annual  charges,  including  repairs  and  improvements,  a  fixed 
percentage  of  the  total  tax  levy  for  current  municipal  purposes, 
this  percentage  to  be  in  the  first  instance  determined  by  the  actual 
average  ratio  of  current  school  annual  expenses  to  other  current 
municipal  annual  expenses  for  the  five  years  preceding  the  date  of 
this  determination,  the  percentage  thus  arrived  at  to  be  alterable 
after  six  months  on  the  proposal  of  the  board,  approved  by  popular 
vote  at  the  next  municipal  election,  a  majority  of  two-thirds  being 
required  ;  (2)  for  new  grounds  and  buildings,  the  product  of  long 
loans  to  be  issued  by  the  municipality  on  the  proposal  of  the  board, 
approved  by  popular  vote  at  the  next  municipal  election,  a  majority 
of  two-thirds  being  required. 

The  superintendent,  the  chief  officer  of  the  board,  should  have 
authority  to  nominate  for  appointment  by  the  board  an  adequate 
number  of  inspectors,  and  these  inspectors  should  be  appointed, 
not  with  reference  to  localities  or  sets  of  schools,  but  with  reference 
to  the  departments  of  instruction  in  which  they  are  respectively 
expert  and  which  they  are  therefore  competent  to  supervise  ;  and 
the  board  should  not  be  confined  in  their  choice  to  nominations  by 
the  superintendent.  The  number  of  inspectors  should  be  deter- 
mined by  the  board  with  due  reference  to  the  size  of  the  system. 
The  tenure  of  the  superintendent  and  inspectors  should  be  during 
good  behavior  and  efficiency. 

The  superintendent  and  inspectors  should  constitute  a  body,  pre- 
sided over  by  the  superintendent,  holding  weekly  meetings,  and 
charged  with  important  functions.  The  several  inspectors  should 
make  annual  reports  to  the  superintendent,  and  the  superintendent 
an  annual  report  to  the  board  ;  and  all  these  reports  should  be 
annually  published. 

II.  All  teachers,  except  principals  or  head  masters,  should  be 
selected,  promoted,  and  discharged  by  the  superintendent  and  in- 
spectors acting  as  a  body,  first  appointments  b::ing  as  a  rule  open 
only  to  persons  who  have  passed  general  and  special  examinations 
conducted  by  the  superintendent  and  inspectors,  the  records  of 
these  examinations  to  be  for  the  use  of  thr.t  body  only.     Certifi- 


ON   ORGANIZATION  OF  CITY   SCHOOLS.  209 

elates  may  be  given  in  general  terms  for  use  elsewhere.  Experienced 
teachers,  and  graduates  of  colleges,  scientific  schools,  or  univer- 
sities, should  be  eligible  for  positions  without  examination  and  with 
constructive  rank  to  be  determined  by  the  superintendent  and 
inspectors. 

After  reasonable  periods  of  probation— periods  which  should 
ordinarily  cover  at  least  eight  years  for  persons  who  enter  the  ser- 
vice at  the  lowest  grade — the  tenure  of  all  teachers  should  be 
during  good  behavior  and  efficiency. 

All  the  teachers  in  the  system  should  be  ex  officio  members  of 
an  association,  one  of  whose  functions  should  be  to  elect  annually 
from  their  own  number  members  of  a  representative  body,  to  be 
called  the  council.  The  school  board  should  determine  from  time 
to  time  the  number  of  members  of  the  council,  and  the  proportion 
of  this  number  which  should  be  replaced  each  year.  The  member- 
ship of  the  council  should  be  fairly  stable,  and  not  so  numerous 
as  to  make  intimate  and  effective  discussion  difficult. 

All  school  programmes  should  be  constructed  by  the  super- 
intendent and  inspectors  with  the  advice  of  the  council  ;  but  de- 
cisions should  be  made  only  after  ample  opportunity  had  been 
afforded  to  the  council  for  discussing  and  criticising  the  proposals 
of  the  superintendent  and  inspectors. 

16.  For  those  grades  in  which  uniform  text-books  are  necessary, 
the  selection  of  books  should  be  made  by  the  superintendent  and 
inspectors  with  the  advice  of  the  council.  For  those  grades,  or  in 
those  subjects,  in  which  various  text-books  may  be  used  with 
advantage,  or  for  which  books  of  reference  are  needed,  the  prin- 
cipals of  schools  should  make  the  selection. 

17.  Promotion  of  pupils  should  be  determined  by  principals  of 
schools  on  a  general  plan  made  by  the  superintendent  and  in- 
spectors with  the  advice  of  the  council. 

Annual  appropriations,  reasonably  constant  in  amount,  should  be 
made  by  the  board  for  each  school  for  the  purchase  of  books, 
apparatus,  and  supplies,  all  such  purchases  to  be  made  through  the 
business  manager  on  the  order  of  the  principal  of  the  school. 

The  business  manager,  a  salaried  officer,  should  buy  all  sup- 
plies, oversee  all  the  service  in  school  buildings,  direct  all  repairs 
and  improvements  which  can  be  executed  without  the  aid  of  an 
architect,  and  in  general  be  responsible  for  the  condition  and  the 
care  of  all  grounds,  buildings,  and  other  property  belonging  to  the 
system. 

The  architect  should  not  be  a  salaried  officer,  but  should  be 
paid  for  designs,  drawings,  specifications,  and  superintendence,  by 
commissions,  computed  in  accordance  with  the  customary  charges 
in  private  practice. 

I  add  a  few  remarks  on  the  above  plan,  without  attempting  any 
elaborate  argument  in  support  of  it. 

Appointed  boards,  serving  without  pay,  have  proved  to  be  inde- 
pendent, efficient,  and  trustworthy;  as,  for  example,  boards  of  health, 
trustees  of  libraries,  park  commissioners,  and  hospital  trustees. 

14 


2IO  APPENDIX. 

The  resources  of  the  school  board  should  not  depend  on  votes  of 
the  city  council,  and  should  rise  and  fall  automatically  with  the 
general  expenditure  for  city  purposes. 

The  superintendent  and  inspectors  would  be  a  body  of  experts 
qualified  to  administer  the  school  system  in  all  its  details. 

The  council  would  be  an  advisory  body  through  which  the  opin- 
ions of  the  teachers  about  programmes,  pupil  promotions,  books, 
and  methods,  could  be  officially  brought  to  bear  on  the  super- 
intendent and  inspectors. 

Precedents  already  exist  for  almost  every  feature  in  the  plan. 

Charles  B.  Gilbert,  Superintendent  of  Schools, 

St.  Paul,  Minn. 

My  present  judgment  is  in  favor  of  a  board  of  education  of  not 
more  than  five  members,  elected  by  the  people  from  the  city  at 
large  for  long  terms,  say  five  years,  making  one  election  each  year. 
Of  these  five,  provision  should  be  made  that  not  more  than  three 
shall  belong  to  one  political  party. 

This  board  should  appoint  the  city  superintendent  for  an  indefi- 
nite term,  subject  to  removal  for  cause,  and  the  law  should  require 
that  the  city  superintendent  be  a  man  of  liberal  education  and  pro- 
fessional training  or  experience.  If  the  State  authorities  have  any- 
thing to  say  about  it,  it  should  be  simply  to  certify  to  these  qualifi- 
cations. I  have  little  faith  in  State  educational  authorities  as  a 
whole.  The  authority  to  license  teachers  should  rest  in  the  super- 
intendent, with  an  advisory  committee  of  the  board.  The  authori- 
ties who  issue  a  license  should  also  have  the  power  to  cancel  it  for 
cause.  The  superintendent  should  have  the  power  to  appoint  and 
discharge  teachers.  I  am  uncertain  whether  it  would  be  wise  for 
the  board  to  have  the  power  to  confirm  or  not. 

Teachers  should  be  assigned  to  grades  in  the  school  by  the  prin- 
cipal of  the  school,  after  consultation  with  the  superintendent. 

The  plan  of  competitive  examination  does  not  seem  to  me  a  good 
one. 

The  relative  duties  of  superintendent  and  principal  it  would  be 
impossible  to  define  fully  in  a  short  statement.  In  general,  the 
superintendent  should  determine  the  general  methods  of  work  and 
the  principles  to  be  employed,  and  to  the  principal  of  the  school 
should  be  left  their  development. 

The  course  of  study  should  be  made  by  the  superintendent. 
Text-books  should  also  be  selected  by  him. 

Promotions  should  be  made  by  principals  in  consultation  with 
their  teachers.  / 

Disputes  between  pupils  and  the  teaching  force  should  be  referred 
to  the  superintendent. 

The  superintendent  should  also  have  the  supervision  of  the 
enforcement  of  the  compulsory  education  law. 

In  regard  to  boards  of  education,  it  is  my  opinion  that  their 
duties  should  be  broad  but  not  specific.  They  should  have  power 
to  fix  upon  a  schedule  of  salaries,  and  to  determine  in  a  general 


ON  ORGANIZATION  OF  CITY  SCHOOLS.  2H 

way  what  funds  are  required  for  the  running  of  the  schools,  and, 
how  they  are  to  be  expended  ;  what  buildings  are  to  be  erected  ;, 
what  suppHes  purchased.  They  should  appoint  a  superintendent, 
who  should  have  entire  control  of  the  educational  work  of  the; 
schools.  They  should  appoint  another  man,  or  two  if  necessary, 
who  should  attend  entirely  to  the  business  side,  such  as  the  pur- 
chase of  supplies,  erection  and  care  of  buildings,  appointment  and 
supervision  of  janitors,  relieving  the  board  of  those  duties  which, 
are  burdensome  to  business  men,  and  which  boards  always  do- 
badly.  ; 

1  think  with  some  such  plan  as  this  we  could  have  better  boards 
than  are  common,  and  be  free  from  the  peril  which  I  feel  rests  in' 
the  absolute  power  of  the  commissioner.  I  am  aware  that  it  is  a 
prevalent  opinion  that  the  members  of  the  board  should  be  appointed? 
by  the  mayor,  and  not  elected  by  the  people,  and  possibly  I  am 
wrong  in  my  opinion  ;  but  I  certainly  have  not  yet  seen  an  instance 
of  the  continued  successful  operation  of  one-man-power  in  this- 
country — that  is,  of  one  man  responsible  directly  to  the  people — and 
I  doubt  whether  the  United  States  is  congenial  soil  for  such  a  plan,) 

Paul  H.  Hanus,  Assistant  Professor  of  the  History  and 

Art  of  Teaching,  Harvard  University,  Cambridge,  Mass,' 

I.  A  board  of  education. 

2  and  3.  Answered  in  i. 

4.  For  cities  comprising  one  hundred  thousand  inhabitants,  or 
fewer,  the  board  of  education  should  consist  of  five  members  ;  for 
larger  cities,  the  board  of  education  should  consist  of  a  somewhat^ 
larger  number,  say,  seven,  nine,  or  eleven — never  more  than  eleven^, 

5.  (t)  Appointed  by  the  mayor  at  stated  times,  as  remote  as  pos-?.» 
sible  from  the  city  elections.  (2)  From  the  city  at  large.  The^i 
desirability,  when  such  desirability  exists,  of  having  all  sections  of 
the  city  represented,  would  naturally  be  urged  on  the  mayor  ;  buti 
he  ought  not  to  be  obliged  to  select  the  members  of  the  board  from 
localities  having  fixed  boundaries. 

6.  Electing  or  appointing  the  members  of  the  board  of  education 
in  equal  numbers  from  the  "  two  great  political  parties  "  will  not, 
eliminate  politics  from  school  administration.  On  the  contrary,  to- 
recognize  the  existence  of  political  parties  in  connection  with  the- 
appointment  of  members  of  the  board  of  education — a  matter  with.; 
which  politics  has  absolutely  nothing  to  do — is  to  affirm  a  relation:- 
between  them,  which  afterwards  has  to  be  considered. 

There  are,  fortunately,  some  cities  in  which  politics  does  not  enter.: 
into  the  administration  of  school  affairs.  Throughout  the  country, 
wherever  political  influence  is  felt  in  the  administration  of  school 
affairs,  every  effort  should  be  made  by  the  superintendent,  and  all 
worthy  citizens  whose  co-operation  he  can  secure,  to  cultivate  public 
opinion  in  favor  of  the  complete  elimination  of  political  influence 
from  school  affairs.  It  should  be  universally  recognized  that  a- 
candidate's  political  opinions  have  absolutely  nothing  to  do  with  his. 
qualifications  for  membership   in  the   board   of  education.     TJie 


212  APPENDIX. 

question  of  his  politics,  so  long  as  he  is  a  man  of  good  character, 
ought  never  to  be  raised  either  for  or  against  any  candidate. 

.  7.  By  the  board  of  education,  at  first  for  a  probationary  term  of 
two  years  ;  then  for  a  longer  probationary  term,  say  five  years  ; 
thereafter  (for  a  term  without  stated  limit)  during  efficiency  and 
good  behavior. 

8.  He  should  be  a  man  of  character,  refinement,  scholarship  (he 
should  have  a  college  education,  at  least),  professional  training 
(collegiate  or  university  study  of  education),  and  successful  experi- 
ence as  a  teacher  or  supervising  officer,  or  both. 

'  9.  He  should  be  appointed  by,  and  should  be  responsible  to,  the 
local  authorities. 

10.  (i)  In  the  superintendent.  (2)  In  the  superintendent,  with 
the  right  of  appeal  to  the  board  of  education. 

11.  (i)  The  board  of  education  should  elect  the  superintendent 
and  a  business  officer.  The  business  officer  should  be  the  business 
agent  of  the  board,  the  executive  head  of  all  its  financial  or  business 
affairs.  The  superintendent  should  be  free  from  all  administration 
of  business  affairs  in  order  that  he  may  devote  himself  to  the 
administration  of  the  work  of  instruction  of  which  he  is  the  executive 
head.  The  superintendent  should  appoint  all  assistant  superin- 
tendents, principals,  and  teachers.  (2)  In  the  superintendent,  with 
the  right  of  appeal  to  the  board  of  education. 

12.  The  principal  of  the  school. 

13.  No.  Promotions  should  be  determined  by  proved  efficiency  ; 
fn  cases  of  equal  efficiency,  by  seniority  of  service. 

14.  The  assistant  superintendents  and  principals,  together  with 
the  superintendent  as  leader  and  presiding  officer,  should  constitute 
a  professional  advisory  council.  In  this  council  the  superintendent 
should  occupy  about  the  same  relation  to  the  other  members  that  a 
college  or  university  president  bears  to  the  members  of  a  faculty. 
He  should  have  the  right  to  propose  measures,  and  to  recommend 
and  debate  measures  proposed  by  other  members  of  the  council. 
He  should  have  the  power  to  enforce  any  measure  favored  by  a 
majority  of  the  council,  and  no  measure  should  be  adopted  without 
his  approval.  In  their  own  buildings  principals  should  administer 
their  schools  without  interference.  The  right  of  the  superintendent 
to  inspect,  criticise,  and  advise  the  assistant  superintendents  and 
principals  in  regard  to  their  teaching  or  administration,  or  both, 
should,  however,  be  definitely  understood :  the  superintendent  is  the 
executive  head  of  the  school  system  in  everything  that  pertains  to 
the  work  of  instruction  ;  the  assistant  superintendents  and  principals 
are  his  subordinate  officers.  It  should  never  be  forgotten,  however, 
that  the  principle  of  all  official  relations  between  the  superintendent 
and  his  subordinates  should  be  co-operation. 

15.  By  the  Advisory  Council  defined  in  4. 

16.  By  the  Advisory  Council  defined  in  4. 

17.  By  the  teachers  of  the  classes  and  the  principals  of  buildings 
without  special  examinations  for  promotion.  Such  examinations 
sliould  be  resorted  to  only  in  disputed  cases. 

18.  All  disputes  between  parents  and  teachers  should  be  reported 


ON  ORGANIZATION  OF  CITY  SCHOOLS.  21^ 

by  the  teachers  concerned  to  the  principal,  at  once,  and  all  minor 
disputes  should  be  adjusted  by  the  teachers  and  parents  directly 
concerned,  with  the  co-operation  of  the  principal  whenever  such 
co-operation  is  desired  by  either  party.  If  the  teachers,  parents,  and 
principal  fail  to  agree,  the  co-operation  of  the  superintendent  shoula 
be  sought ;  and  whenever  the  matter  in  dispute  is  important,  the 
superintendent  should  be  fully  informed  from  the  start  whether  his 
co-operation  is  required  or  not.  If  no  agreement  can  be  reached 
through  the  superintendent's  co-operation,  the  dispute  should  be 
carried  by  the  parties  concerned — /.  ^.,  parents,  teachers,  principal, 
and  superintendent — to  the  board  of  education. 

19.  By  the  local  authorities  through  special  officers  elected  by  the 
board  of  education  on  the  nomination  of  the  superintendent. 


William  R.  Harper,  President  of  the  University  of  Chicago^ 

Chicago,  111. 

1.  Commissioner  without  advisory  council  would  be  better; 
more  definite  policy.     But  a  board  is  better. 

2.  Appointed  by  mayor.     More  definite  responsibility. 

3.  I.  Financial.  Fixes  school  budget  ;  fixes  salaries  ;  audits 
accounts  ;  gives  orders  on  the  treasurer  for  same. 

II.  Educational.  Appoints  teachers  on  recommendation  of 
superintendent  ;  promotes  teachers  on  recommendation  of  superin- 
tendent ;  dismisses  teachers  on  recommendation  of  superintendent ; 
fixes  curriculum  on  recommendation  of  superintendent  ;  fixes  text- 
books on  recommendation  of  superintendent. 

4.  Not  less  than  five  nor  more  than  thirteen.  , 

5.  Appointed  from  city  at  large. 

6.  I  do  not  approve  of  a  bi-partisan  board.  It  is  worse  than  any 
other,  so  far  as  the  spoils  system  is  concerned.  It  should  consist  of 
men  of  such  character  that  the  board  will  be  really  «tf«-partisan.  I 
do  not  believe  that  any  machinery  will  make  a  school  board  non- 
partisan. Nothing  can  do  that  but  such  a  state  of  public  opinion 
as  necessitates  the  appointment  of  such  men  as  school  commis- 
sioners as  will  be  above  partisanship. 

7.  By  the  school  commissioner,  or  by  the  school  board.  Term, 
good  behavior. 

8.  It  would  be  easier  to  say  what  they  should  not  be.  He  should 
be  a  man  (1)  of  comprehensive  education,  liberal  and  professional  ; 
(2)  of  wide  and  successful  experience  in  instruction  and  school 
management. 

9.  No. 

10.  Concurrently  in  the  State  and  in  the  city  board  of  education, 
with  approval  of  superintendent. 

11.  In  the  board,  with  approval  of  superintendent. 

12.  The  principal. 

13.  Yes,  but  it  should  not  be  the  sole  criterion.  The  personal 
equation  should  decide  first  who  should  be  admitted  to  such 
examination.  , 


214  *  APPENDIX. 

14.  The  superintendent  should  deal  with  general  questions ; 
principals,  with  details. 

15.  By  superintendent  and  principals,  with  reservation  of  veto  to 
board  in  case  of  added  expense. 

'    16.  Same  as  15. 

17.  By  board,  on  recommendation  of  superintendent  and  prin- 
cipal ;  or,  in  care  of  principal,  on  recomniendation  of  superin- 
tendent. 

18.  By  the  superintendent,  with  right  of  appeal  to  board. 
'    19.  By  the  board. 

F.  A.  Hill,  Secretary  of  the  State  Board  of  Education, 

Boston,  Mass. 

1.  There  should  be  a  board  of  education,  whose  functions  should 
be  as  nearly  legislative  as  possible. 

2,  3.  See  answer  to  No.  i. 

4.  The  number  of  members  should  be  small.  The  term  of  ser- 
vice should  be  at  least  three  years.  One-third  should  go  out  each 
year. 

5.  The  members  should  be  elected  by  the  people  at  large. 

'  6.  Political  parties  ought  not  to  be  considered  in  their  election. 
Only  the  good  sense  of  the  public  can  eliminate  politics  from  school 
administration. 

7.  The  superintendent  should  be  appointed  by  the  board,  to  serve 
during  efficiency. 

8.  He  should  be  liberally  educated,  have  a  practical  interior 
acquaintance  with  schools,  be  tactful,  have  the  qualities  of  leader- 
ship, etc.,  etc. 

9.  The  superintendent  should  be  responsible  to  the  local  authori- 
ties. 

10.  The  superintendent  should  have  the  initiative  in  matters  of 
licensing  teachers  and  canceling  licenses,  the  board  serving  as  a 
final  court  of  appeal. 

11.  See  answer  to  No.  10. 

12.  The  head  master  should  have  the  power  of  placing  teachers 
within  his  jurisdiction  or  field  of  work. 

13.  If  the  idea  of  a  competitive  examination  includes  the  whole 
subject  of  fitness,  personal,  scholastic,  professional,  and  executive, 
and  is  not  limited  to  paper  results,  it  is  an  idea  to  be  favored.  The 
best  men  should  go  up,  and  the  selection  of  the  best  men  involves 
the  comparison  of  men.  A  plan  of  some  kind  that  shall  aid  in 
arriving  at  wise  selections  is  certainly  desirable. 

14.  The  superintendent  deals  with  general  policies  ;  the  prin- 
"cipal  should  be  free  within  the  limits  of  general  policies  and  in  his 
own  field. 

15.  16,  17,  and  18.  The  superintendent  and  his  aids  should  con- 
trol courses  of  study,  the  selection  of  books,  apparatus,  etc.,  pro- 
motions, the  settlement  of  disputes  between  parents  and  the 
teaching  force,  etc. ;  that  is,  the  initiative  and  first  decisions  should 
come  from  his  office,  the   board   acting  in  cases  where  ultimate 


ON   ORGANIZATION   OF   CITY    SCHOOLS.  21$ 

decisions  rest  with  the  board  by  law  and  serving  as  a  final  body  of 
appeals  and  decisions 

19.  The  compulsory  laws  for  education  should  be  enforced  by 
truant  or  other  officers,  responsible  directly  to  the  superintendent, 
and  finally  to  the  board. 

The  underlying  principle  of  the  foregoing  answers  is  this  : 

A  board  of  education  should  confine  itself  to  legislative  func- 
tions, to  questions  of  school  accommodations,  amounts  of  money 
needed,  salaries,  the  grander  policies  of  education,  etc.  Its  members 
are  presumably  not  specially  qualified,  and  usually  it  is  physically 
impossible  for  them,  to  attend  wisely  to  details  of  administra- 
tion or  to  the  settlement  of  purely  professional  questions.  Every- 
thing of  an  executive  nature,  and  everything  that,  in  administra- 
tion, concerns  the  wise  and  successful  pedagogical  treatment  of 
school  matters,  should  be  intrusted  to  the  superintendent,  who 
should  have  associates  and  helps  enough  to  do  the  work.  One 
function  of  a  board  is  to  back  up  and  support  a  superintendent 
in  a  vigorous  policy. 

In  other  words,  all  matters  of  an  educational  nature  that  require 
expert  consideration  should  be  relegated  to  a  competent,  well-paid 
executive  expert,  who  should  have  the  aid  of  other  competent,  well- 
paid  experts.  Their  decisions  in  the  matters  intrusted  should 
usually  be  accepted  and  supported.  They  may  refer  questions  of 
doubt  to  the  board,  and  the  board  should  always  be  viewed  as  the 
place  for  appeals  and  the  source  of  all  authority,  under  the  laws. 

These  views  I  hold  in  a  tentative  way — not  as  absolutely  final 
ones — for  I  may  not  be  wise  in  proposing  details  of  a  general  policy 
that  I  firmly  believe  in  ;  namely,  the  policy  of  centering  purely 
educational  responsibility  in  educational  experts,  so  paid,  of  such 
tenure,  and  so  supported  by  a  wise  board  behind  them,  that  is  con- 
tent with  its  general  control  of  great  policies,  and  its  ultimate  con- 
trol, in  cases  of  appeal,  in  all  matters,  that  experts  shall  not  shrink 
from  a  fearless  policy. 

B.  A.  Hinsdale,  Professor  of  the  Science  and  the  Art  of 

Teaching,  University  of  Michigan,  Ann  Arbor,  Mich. 

Before  proceeding  to  answer  the  questions,  I  wish  to  observe  that 
it  is  difficult  or  impossible  to  answer  them  in  absolute  and  unquali- 
fied terms.  What  is  best  for  one  city  or  town  is  not  necessarily 
best  for  another.  It  is  not  the  American,  or  rather  the  Anglo-Saxon, 
way  to  take  the  high  h  priori  road,  but  rather  to  take  causes  and 
conditions,  particular  as  well  as  general,  into  account.  Hence  it 
must  be  understood  that  I  should  by  no  means  be  bound  by  the 
following  answers  in  all  cases.  In  other  words,  the  answers  will 
relate  to  what  I  conceive  to  be  average  conditions. 

1.  I  incline  to  the  commissioner  with  an  advisory  council.  In 
this  way  power,  and  especially  responsibility,  is  focalized,  which  is  a 
very  important  thing  in  public-school  matters. 

2.  I  incline  to  the  popular  election  of  the  commissioner,  as  being 
more  consonant  with  the  spirit  of  our  instruction. 


2l6  APPENDIX. 

3.  His  powers  and  duties  should  be  executive  and  administra- 
tive, not  legislative  or  judicial. 

4.  I  incline  neither  to  a  large  board  nor  to  a  small  one.  A  small 
board  creates  suspicion  and  often  promotes  scheming.  A  large 
board  tends  to  become  too  irresponsible  and  reckless.  What  I  have 
said  about  boards  will  apply  as  well  to  advisory  councils.  There  is, 
in  my  mind,  even  more  objection  to  a  large  board  than  to  a  large 
council,  because  the  board  will  be  charged  with  executive  and 
administrative  duties  to  a  much  greater  extent  than  the  council. 

5.  On  the  whole,  I  incline  to  appointment,  as,  for  example,  by  the 
judges  of  the  courts.  I  see  no  objection  to  both  city  representation 
and  district  representation.  If  the  members  are  to  be  elected,  1 
incline  to  city  representation. 

6.  This  would  be  desirable,  but  I  see  no  way  to  bring  it  about 
except  through  the  operation  of  public  opinion.  Such  a  division 
as  is  referred  to  could  hardly  be  secured  by  means  of  positive  laws. 
If  leading  men  in  the  two  political  parties  would  agree  to  it,  and 
see  to  it,  as  was  formerly  the  case  in  Minneapolis,  as  perhaps  is  yet, 
the  end  could  be  accomplished. 

7.  If  there  is  to  be  a  commissioner  and  council,  the  commissioner 
should  nominate  and  the  council  confirm.  If  there  is  to  be  aboard, 
the  board  must  elect.  The  term  of  office  should  be  good  behavior, 
or  if  it  has  a  time  limit  it  should  be  a  long  one. 

8.  If  there  is  a  commissioner  and  council,  so  that  the  city  super- 
intendent will  be  relieved  of  many  business  matters  that  sometimes 
fall  to  him,  I  think  it  very  desirable  that  the  superintendent's 
strength  should  lie  on  the  pedagogical  side  rather  than  on  the 
business  side.  Still  he  must  be  a  man  of  good  business  and 
administrative  sense.  His  great  functions  I  conceive  to  be  peda- 
gogical. 

9.  I  should  answer  this  question  decidedly  in  the  negative.  It  is 
contrary  to  our  cherished  ideas  of  local  self-government,  and  would, 
in  my  opinion,  promote  evil  rather  than  good.  I  am  unable,  how- 
ever, to  say  how  the  State  system  operates  in  Virginia,  where  it 
prevails. 

10.  The  licensing  authority  and  the  canceling  authority  should 
be  the  same.  I  think  it  would  be  a  good  plan  to  put  the  nomination 
of  examiners  in  the  hands  of  the  superintendent,  and  the  confirming 
authority  in  the  hands  of  the  board  or  council.  One  great  need 
in  our  schools  is  larger  professional  influence  in  the  licensing  of 
teachers. 

11.  The  power  of  appointment  and  the  power  of  discharging 
should  be  the  same.  I  like  the  Cincinnati  and  Cleveland  plan.  If 
this  cannot  be  secured,  then  the  board  must  elect ;  in  no  case  should 
the  commissioner,  if  one,  appoint. 

12.  The  assignment  should  be  made  by  the  superintendent,  acting 
in  conjunction  with  his  assistants. 

13.  Something  can  be  said  on  the  affirmative  side  of  this  question. 
However,  competitive  examinations  test  only  scholarship  and  think- 
ing ability,  and  as  these  are  by  no  means  the  only  elements  enter- 
ing into  the  appointment,  the  test  would  not  be  sufficient.     Still  I 


ON  ORGANIZATION  OF  CITY   SCHOOLS.  217 

am  inclined  to  think  that  competition  could  be  usefully  employed  to 
a  limited  degree. 

14.  An  adequate  answer  to  this  question  would  require  a  maga- 
zine article.  I  can  only  say  that  the  ultimate  source  of  instruction 
in  regard  to  methods  and  teaching  must  be  the  superintendent.  Still 
the  principal  should  have  a  distinct  status.  Teachers  should  have 
some  measure  of  responsibility  to  the  principal,  but  I  should 
strongly  oppose  a  system  that  would  preclude  the  teacher  from 
reaching  the  superintendent,  or  the  superintendent  from  reaching 
the  teacher,  save  through  the  principal.  The  teacher  should  have 
a  double  loyalty  and  a  double  patriotism,  much  as  the  American 
citizen  owes  loyally  to  the  State  and  the  nation. 

15.  Courses  of  study  should  be  formally  made  by  the  board  or 
council,  but  they  should  be  really  made  by  the  superintendent, 
assisted  by  his  advisers. 

16.  I  answer  this  question  in  the  same  terms  as  the  fifteenth. 

17.  Promotions  should  be  made  by  principals,  acting  in  conjunc- 
tion with  teachers  on  the  one  side,  and  the  superintendent  and  his 
assistants  on  the  other. 

18.  That  will  depend  upon  the  nature  of  the  dispute.  Many 
disputes  can  be  settled  directly  by  bringing  the  parent  and  the 
teacher  together,  but  some  cannot  be  so  settled.  In  this  second  case, 
the  settlement  should  be  effected,  as  a  rule,  by  the  parent  and  the 
superintendent,  not  by  the  parent  and  the  principal ;  still  there  will 
be  cases  when  the  intervention  of  the  principal  will  conduce  to  good 
results. 

19.  I  know  of  no  better  way  than  for  the  school  authorities  to 
appoint,  under  the  law,  a  school  police,  not  using  that  name,  how- 
ever. Information  must  come,  of  course,  from  the  superintendent's 
office  directly,  but  ultimately  from  the  teachers.  The  truant  officer, 
or  school  policeman,  should  be  in  constant  close  connection  with 
the  superintendent's  office. 

D.  L.  Y^YKYW.^,  Professor  of  Pedagogy, 

University  of  Minnesota,  Minneapolis,  Minn. 

1.  The  essential  to  an  efficient  organization  is  one  mind  capable 
to  comprehend  the  entire  system — capable  in  intellect  and  admin- 
istrative ability.  To  meet  the  demands  of  details  he  should  have 
an  advisory  board.     Hence  I  believe  in  a  commissioner. 

2.  He  should  be  appointed  in  a  deliberate  manner  by  some  re- 
sponsible authority.  When  our  cities  elect  mayors  in  the  spirit  of 
municipal  reform,  they  will  be  well  fitted  to  make  the  appointment. 

5.  The  members  should  be  comprehensive  in  their  intelligence 
and  sympathies.  In  such  case  there  would  be  no  necessity  for 
electing  by  districts.  * 

6.  The  selection  should  be  without  formal  recognition  of  political 
parties. 

7.  The  superintendent  of  schools  should  be  carefully  selected. 
This  cannot  be  done  by  elections  or  caucuses. 

8.  Besides  his  scholastic  preparation,  he  should  have  a  theoretical 


2l8  APPENDIX. 

preparation  well  tested  by  experience.  He  should  know  men,  and 
be  well  able  to  administer  educational  affairs  in  the  selection  of 
teachers,  and  in  supporting  and  improving  those  in  the  service. 

11.  The  nomination  of  teachers  should  be  with  the  superinten- 
dent, the  same  to  be  appointed  or  confirmed  by  the  board. 

12.  Appointment  or  assignment  to  grades  must  be  left  with  the 
superintendent. 

13.  Such  examinations  should  be  made  as  will  determine  fitness. 
Mere  scholastic  tests  are  not  sufficient. 

15.  Courses  of  study  should  be  made  by  some  one  representing 
the  wisdom  and  experience  of  the  entire  corps  and  profession  of 
teachers.  This  means  the  experience  and  thought  of  the  educa- 
tional world  adapted  to  the  needs  of  a  particular  community.  The 
city  superintendent  should  be  capable  of  this. 

16.  Persons  capable  of  using  tools  ought  to  be  capable  of  select- 
ing them. 

1 7.  Persons  capable  of  teaching  ought  to  know  when  their  work 
is  done,  or,  in  other  words,  should  decide  promotions.  Of  course, 
there  must  be  an  equalizing  agency,  to  make  up  for  the  defects  of 
teachers. 

18.  By  the  superintendent. 

19.  By  some  authority  independent  of  the  educational. 


Colonel  Francis  W.  Parker,  Principal  of  the  , 

Cook  County  Normal  School^  Englevi^ood,  111.     | 

1.  A  board  of  education. 

2.  Elected  by  the  people  at  large  at  a  time  when  there  is  no 
other  election. 

3.  To  select  a  superintendent  capable  of  managing  a  city  school 
system.  The  board  should  be  able  to  judge  of  the  ability  of  the 
superintendent  and  of  his  work,  and  should  support  him  in  all  that 
he  tries  to  do,  so  long  as  they  are  satisfied  that  he  is  equal  to  the 
work. 

4.  Five  members. 

5.  Elected  at  large  from  the  city  on  one  ticket.  It  would  be  a 
good  plan  to  elect  one  member  each  year. 

6.  The  election  of  boards  of  education  should  be  entirely  separate 
and  apart  from  party  politics.  Members  should  be  selected  for 
their  business  ability.  By  "  business  ability  "  I  mean  men  who 
have  the  sound  judgment  and  common  sense  to  select  a  competent 
manager  or  superintendent,  and  to  support  him  while  in  office. 

7.  By  the  board  of  education,  for  a  term  of  not  less  than  five 
years. 

8.  A  man  or  woman  of  excellent  education  ;  not  necessarily  a 
graduate  of  a  college  or  university.  Should  have  a  thorough  profes- 
sional education  ;  a  practical  teacher,  if  possible.  If  not  a  teacher, 
should  have  a  comprehension  of  the  science  of  education,  and 
know  educative  work  when  he  or  she  sees  it.  The  principal  func- 
tion of  a  superintendent  is  to  select  and  teach  teachers. 


ON  ORGANIZATION  OF  CITY   SCHOOLS.  2ig 

9.  The  school  affairs  of  a  city  should  not  in  any  way  be  managed 
by  the  State  authorities.  The  common  schools  should  depend  upon 
the  people  who  pay  the  money  for  their  support. 

10.  In  the  superintendent. 

11.  Principals  should  be  allowed  to  nominate  teachers  from  a 
selected  list  made  by  the  superintendent.  A  request  to  discharge 
a  teacher  on  the  part  of  the  principal  should  be  final.  Either  the 
request  should  be  indorsed  or  the  principal  discharged.  All  power 
to  appoint  and  discharge  teachers,  however,  should  be  vested  in  the 
superintendent. 

12.  The  principal  of  the  school. 

13.  All  promotions  of  teachers  to  better  salaries  and  more  re- 
sponsible places  should  be  made  upon  men^  alone  ;  there  should  be 
no  competitive  examinations.  Merit  should  be  decided  by  actual 
teaching. 

14.  The  principals  should  be  the  advisory  council  of  the  superin- 
tendent ;  the  superintendent  should  supervise  the  principals,  and 
the  principals  should  supervise  their  own  schools,  A  principal 
should  be,  virtually,  supervisor  of  his  own  school,  and  the  superin- 
tendent should  decide,  by  examinations  and  inspections,  whether 
he  is  capable  of  doing  such  work.  ■ 

15.  By  the  superintendent,  with  the  principals  as  his  advisory 
council  ;  the  principals,  in  turn,  should  take  and  consider  the  advice 
of  their  teachers. 

16.  By  the  superintendent,  under  the  advice  and  counsel  of  his 
principals. 

17.  All  promotions  should  be  made  by  the  teacher  of  a  class  or 
grade. 

18.  By  the  principal  of  the  school,  with  an  appeal  to  the  super- 
intendent. 

19.  By  the  principal  of  a  school,  aided  by  all  his  teachers,  and  sup- 
ported by  the  superintendent.  All  truant  officers  should  be  under 
the  immediate  control  of  the  superintendent. 

The  whole  question  of  school  supervision,  as  in  all  other  business 
operations,  may  be  summed  up  in  one  word,  "  responsibility.'' 


Henry  R.  Pattengill,  State  Superintendent 

of  Public  Instruction,  Lansing,  Mich. 

I.  I  think  I  am  in  favor  of  a  board  of  education. 

4.  This  board  should  not  be  a  large  one — say  six  or  eight  for  a 
large  city. 

5.  I  would  have  the  members  elected  by  the  people  at  large. 

6.  I  would  have  the  arrangements  so  made  that  two  should  be 
elected  each  year — one  from  each  of  the  two  principal  parties — and 
the  person  so  chosen  should  be  nominated  in  district  caucuses  con- 
ducted on  the  most  approved  and  modern  plan  ;  that  at  these  cau- 
cuses members  of  any  political  parties  could  vote,  but  that  it  should 
be  understood  that  the  person  selected  should  belong  to  the  Repub- 
lican or  Democratic  party,  or  some  other  party,  in  accordance  with 


220  •  APPENDIX. 

the  situation  of  the  political  wheel  at  that  time.  That  is  to  say, 
all  that  vote  should  vote  to  nominate  some  Republican  one  year, 
and  a  Democrat  the  next  year  ;  but  when  nominated  these  names 
should  be  placed  upon  both  the  tickets,  Republican  and  Democratic. 
This  plan  has  been  tried  in  Lansing  for  several  years,  and  works 
very  satisfactorily.  Politics  do  not  enter  into  the  choice  of  our 
school  board.  Ours,  however,  are  chosen  by  wards.  The  citizens 
of  the  ward  assemble  in  caucus  and  vote  for  a  member  of  the  school 
board  to  be  placed  upon  the  ticket,  one  party  having  it  one  year 
and  one  the  next.  Both  parties  by  agreement  abide  by  the  deci- 
sions of  these  caucuses. 

7.  The  superintendent  of  schools  should  be  appointed  by  the 
school  board  for  life  or  good  behavior. 

8.  The  city  superintendent  should  have  a  thorough  education, 
be  a  man  of  excellent  business  ability,  a  man  of  unusual  common 
sense,  possessed  of  genial  manners,  and  having  the  power  of  inspir- 
ing and  encouraging  teachers  to  do  good  work. 

9.  No. 

10.  In  a  committee  from  the  school  board  and  the  city  superin- 
tendent, their  examination  questions  and  methods  of  examination 
subject  to  the  approval  of  the  State  superintendent  of  public 
instruction.  The  power  to  cancel  licenses  should  be  held  by  the 
body  that  grants  the  license. 

11.  The  city  superintendent  should  be  the  power  to  appoint 
teachers  and  the  power  to  discharge. 

12.  The  superintendent,  in  conference  with  his  principals,  should 
be  the  power  to  assign  teachers  to  grades  or  classes. 

13.  Yes. 

14.  The  city  superintendent  should  have  the  general  charge  of 
the  affairs  of  the  schools,  and  be  seconded  in  his  efforts  by  the 
principals,  who  in  turn  should  have  charge  over  the  individual 
schools  over  which  they  are  appointed.  Principals  should  be  held 
responsible  for  the  work  done  in  these  schools,  and  should  be  sub- 
ject to  the  guidance  and  direction  of  the  city  superintendent. 

15.  The  course  of  study  should  be  made  by  the  superintendent 
and  principals  working  conjointly. 

16.  Text-books  should  be  selected  by  superintendent  and  prin- 
cipals. 

17.  Promotions  should  be  made  by  the  principals,  subject  to 
approval  of  the  city  superintendent. 

18.  Disputes  between  parents  and  the  teaching  force  should  be 
settled  by  principals,  with  power  of  appeal  to  the  city  superin- 
tendent. 

19.  Compulsory  education  laws  should  be  enforced  by  the  school 
board,  placing  the  executive  duties  of  the  office  in  the  hands  of  a 
truant  officer  who  is  not  a  member  of  the  police  force,  who  receives 
a  compensation  by  the  day,  and  the  law  should  be  so  arranged  that 
the  parent  or  guardian  who  fails  to  comply  with  its  provision  may 
be  subject  to  a  fine  or  imprisonment.  It  should  be  made  the  duty 
of  the  board  to  appoint  a  truant  officer. 


ON  ORGANIZATION  OF  CITY   SCHOOLS.  221 

J.  G.  SCHURMAN,  President  of  Cornell  University, 

Ithaca,  N.  Y. 

In  reply  to  questions  i-6,  I  would  say  that,  in  my  opinion,  there 
should  be  provided  for  every  city  school  system  a  board  of  educa- 
tion, and  that  such  board  should  consist  of  a  large  number  of  mem- 
bers in  order  to  prevent  manipulation  which  might  bring  it  under 
the  control  of  one  man  or  one  faction.  In  a  city  of  twenty  thousand 
I  should  think  twelve  members  the  minimum,  and  in  larger  cities, 
where  the  population  is  counted  by  hundreds  of  thousands,  I  should 
not  think  a  board  of  fifty  or  sixty  too  large.  In  my  opinion,  the 
members  of  this  board  should  be  elected  by  the  people  and  hold 
office  for  a  considerable  length  of  time — three  or  four  years  at  least. 
They  should  not  all  retire  at  the  same  date,  but  a  fraction  of  the 
number — say  a  third  or  a  fourth — should  go  out  annually.  These 
members  should,  I  think,  be  chosen  to  represent  both  districts  and 
the  city  at  large.  This  dual  system  would  secure  the  consideration 
of  local  wants  and  peculiarities,  and  at  the  same  time  the  well-being 
of  the  city  schools  as  a  whole.  In  reply  to  the  sixth  question,  I 
must  state  what  will  sound  like  a  paradox  in  theory  ;  namely,  that,  in 
order  to  keep  politics  out  of  the  schools,  the  members  of  the  board 
should  be  elected  in  equal  numbers  from  the  two  gireat  political 
parties. 

In  reply  to  questions  7-9,  I  think  the  superintendent  of  schools 
should  be  appointed  by  the  board,  not  elected  by  the  people,  and 
that  his  term  of  office  should  be  during  good  behavior.  The  most 
important  qualification  of  a  city  superintendent  is,  in  my  opinion, 
the  capacity  to  select  good  teachers.  He  has,  no  doubt,  other 
duties,  but,  however  well  he  fulfills  them,  the  city  schools  will  be  a 
failure  unless  they  have  been  supplied  with  good  teachers.  With 
good  teachers  other  defects  may  be  overcome.  I  do  not  think  that 
the  city  superintendent  should  owe  his  appointment  directly  or 
indirectly  to  the  State  authorities,  or  be  responsible  to  them  rather 
than  to  the  local  authorities. 

In  regard  to  question  10,  I  hold  very  strongly  to  the  opinion  that 
teachers  should  be  licensed  by  the  State.  If  the  profession  is  to 
enjoy  the  dignity  of  other  professions — say  the  law — there  should 
be  uniform  tests  for  admission  to  it,  and  candidates  who  pass  them 
satisfactorily  should  enjoy  the  privilege  of  practicing  their  profes- 
sion and  be  eligible  for  appointment  in  every  part  of  the  State.  If 
a  State  board  licensed  teachers,  it  would  also  be  their  duty  to 
cancel  licenses  for  cause,  which  cause  would,  however,  be  reported 
to  them  by  the  city  superintendent. 

In  reply  to  questions  11-13,  I  think  the  appointment  of  teachers 
should  be  in  the  hands  of  the  board  of  education  on  the  nomination 
of  the  superintendent.  Should  the  board  of  education  refuse  to 
act  on  the  nomination  of  the  superintendent,  or  appoint  other  can- 
didates, the  breach  between  the  superintendent  and  the  board 
would  be  irreparable,  and  the  superintendent  would  be  forced  to 
resign.  The  preceding  holds  true  also  with  regard  to  the  discharge 
of  teachers.     The  superintendent  should  assign  teachers  to  grades 


222  APPENDIX. 

or  classes  ;  this  is  a  matter  with  which  the  board  has  nothing  to 
do.  The  principle  of  competitive  examination  should,  in  my 
opinion,  not  be  introduced  in  determining  promotions  to  higher  posi- 
tions. Worthiness  of  promotion  in  the  teaching  profession  depends 
upon  so  many  circumstances,  the  character  of  which  cannot  be 
evaluated  by  examination  papers,  but  which  can  be  intuitively 
observed  and  estimated  by  a  competent  superintendent,  that  I 
should  have  no  hesitation  in  rejecting  the  competitive  method  of 
promotion  and  trusting  the  subject  to  the  superintendent.  If  it 
seems  like  giving  him  large  powers,  I  answer  it  is  in  the  main  for 
the  exercise  of  such  powers  that  that  official  exists.  The  office  of 
the  superintendent  adds  to  the  mechanism  of  the  school  system  the 
infinite  value  of  personality,  and  we  must  be  careful  in  all  our  regu- 
lation of  the  subject  not  to  contradict  the  end  for  which  the  office 
exists. 

In  reply  to  question  14,  I  should  say  that  no  definite  answer  can 
be  given.  Superintendent  and  principal  must  work  together.  And 
in  dealing  with  the  principal  the  superintendent  should  make  his 
power  just  as  little  felt  as  possible.  The  consciousness  of  the  prin- 
cipal as  responsible  head  of  the  school  should  not  be  disturbed. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  supreme  power  of  the  superintendent  need 
not  be  abandoned. 

In  reply  to  questions  15-19,  I  would  say  that,  in  my  opinion, 
courses  of  study  should  be  made  by  the  superintendent,  but  ap- 
proved by  the  board  of  education,  and  similarly  also  with  regard 
to  the  choice  of  text-books  and  with  promotions.  As  to  disputes 
between  parents  and  teaching  force,  they  should  be  settled  by  the 
superintendent,  with  the  reservation  of  the  right  of  appeal  to  the 
board  of  education.  A  compulsory  education  law  should  be  en- 
forced by  the  superintendent  with  the  aid  of  the  police. 

Charles  F.  Thwing,  President  of  Western  Reserve 

University,  Cleveland,  O. 

1.  A  commissioner,  with  an  advisory  council.  Reason,  centrali- 
zation of  responsibility. 

2.  Appointed  by  the  mayor.  Reason,  centralization  of  respon- 
sibility. 

3.  Full  responsibility  for  the  conduct  of  the  educational  system. 

4.  Answer  superfluous,  by  reason  of  answer  to  No.  i. 

5.  Answer  superfluous,  by  reason  of  answer  to  No.  i. 

6.  Create  a  public  spirit,  which  shall  allow  members  of  any  advi- 
sory council  to  be  chosen  upon  character  and  ability,  without  refer- 
ence to  partisanship. 

7.  Let  the  superintendent  of  schools  be  appointed  by  the  com- 
missioner or  by  the  mayor.  I  should  make  the  term  not  less  than 
four  years. 

8.  He  should  know  everything,  and  be  able  to  do  everything, 
pertaining  to  the  public  schools  !  ! 

9.  Better  to  make  their  responsibility  to  the  local  authority. 
10.  In  the  superintendent,  in  both  instances,. 


ON  ORGANIZATION   OF  CITY   SCHOOLS.  223 

IT.  In  the  superintendent,  in  both  instances. 

12.  In  the  superintendent,  ultimately.  He  may  use  the  principals 
of  the  schools  in  securing  knowledge. 

13.  No.     Let  continued  work  be  the  test. 

14.  Let  the  superintendent  have  the  responsibility,  and  let  him 
divide  the  supervision,  as  his  judgment  dictates. 

15.  By  the  superintendent,  and  by  him  calling  to  his  aid  any  one 
and  every  one  who  can  give  to  him  the  least  help. 

16.  Same  answer  as  given  to  No.  15. 

17.  By  the  superintendent. 

18.  By  the  superintendent. 

19.  By  the  commissioner. 

These  answers  are  based  upon  the  general  proposition  that  the 
superintendent  is  to  be  responsible  and  the  efficient  head.  Through 
this  principle,  I  think,  we  get  better  results  than  through  any  other. 

E.  E.  White,  Columbus,  O. 

I  do  not  believe  there  is  even  an  ideal  school  system  equally 
adapted  to  all  conditions.  The  best  system  for  one  city,  with  its 
school  history  and  limiting  conditions,  may  not  be  the  best  system 
for  another  city.  I  am  not  sure  that  the  same  system  would  be 
equally  well  adapted  to  cities  of  like  size  in  different  sections  of  the 
country.  An  ideal  system  for  a  city  in  New  England  might  not  be 
the  best  possible  system  for  a  city  in  the  West  or  in  the  South. 
Past  as  well  as  present  conditions  and  influences  should  always  be 
considered  in  school  legislation.  Certain  legislation  maybe  required 
to  correct  evils  that  have  intrenched  themselves  in  school  adminis- 
tration, and  this  legislation  may  be  very  unwise  under  other  and 
different  conditions. 

I  may  also  add  that  I  have  little  faith  in  the  ultimate  success  of 
any  school  system  that  is  placed  beyond  the  reach  of  the  people. 
Their  will  in  school  affairs  is  sure  to  be  law,  and  when  school 
administration  loses  the  confidence  of  the  people,  they  will  find  a 
way  to  change  it.  The  true  end,  as  I  see  it,  is  to  provide  such  a 
system  of  school  administration  as  will  win  and  hold  the  confidence 
of  school  patrons. 

Please  excuse  the  brevity,  and  also  the  uncertainty  of  some  of  my 
answers. 

I.  There  should  be  a  board  of  education,  and  also  an  executive 
officer  having  charge  of  the  business  department  of  school  affairs,  and 
a  superintendent  of  instruction  having  charge  of  the  schools  proper. 
The  general  duties  and  responsibilities  of  each  of  these  executive 
officers  should  be  defined  by  State  law. 

I  am  inclined  to  think  that  the  head  of  the  business  department 
should  be  appointed  by  the  board  of  education,  for  not  less  than 
five  years,  and  that  his  acts  should  be  subject  to  the  approval  of 
the  board.  If,  however,  he  is  to  be  supreme  in  school  affairs,  and 
the  board  only  an  advisory  council,  he  should  be  elected  by  the 
people. 

In  general  terms,  he  should  be  the  executive  officer  of  the  board 


224  APPENDIX. 

in  all  business  affairs,  and  his  duties  should  not  be  left  to  the  board, 
but  should  be  defined  by  the  law  creating  the  office. 

4.  The  number  of  persons  constituting  the  board  will  depend 
much  on  conditions.  As  a  rule,  the  board  should  not  consist  of  less 
than  five  members,  nor  more  than  fifteen.  More  will  depend  on  the 
fitness  of  the  members  than  their  number. 

5.  Cannot  answer  definitely.  There  is  probably  no  "best  plan." 
That  plan  is  best  which  works  the  best,  and  only  experience  can 
settle  this.  In  one  city,  the  election  of  school  directors  works 
well  ;  in  another,  it  is  the  source  of  evil.  In  one  city,  the  appoint- 
ment by  the  mayor  secures  good  men  ;  in  another,  it  fills  the  board 
with  politicians,  possibly  the  partisans  of  the  mayor.  I  am  inclined 
to  think  that  the  election  of  members  by  districts  works  better  in 
most  instances  than  their  election  by  the  city  at  large.  But  the 
districts  should  not  correspond  with  wards,  so  often  run  by  ward 
bummers. 

6.  I  wish  I  knew  how  to  organize  a  city  school  system  in  touch 
with  the  peopky  and  yet  free  from  the  control  and  corruption  of 
party  politics.  I  would  at  once  get  the  plan  patented,  and  retire 
from  hard  work  !  I  think  that  a  school  board  should  not  be  exclu- 
sively composed  of  men  of  one  political  party,  and  this  is  the  basis 
of  my  objection  to  the  election  of  the  members  on  a  general  ticket. 
No  school  board  ought  to  be  organized  on  political  lines.  But  I 
leave  this  question  to  the  wisdom  of  the  Committee  of  Fifteen. 

7.  Much  will  depend  on  the  responsibilities  and  duties  of  the 
superintendent.  If  he  is  to  be  the  real  supervisor  of  school  work, 
he  ought  to  be  appointed  for  not  less  than  five  years,  nor  more  than 
ten  I  doubt  the  wisdom  of  appointing  superintendents  for  life. 
Few  men  can  successfully  supervise  a  system  of  schools  more  than 
ten  years,  and  fewer  more  than  twenty  years.  They  are  too  often 
unable  to  see  real  defects  in  their  own  schools,  or  to  devise  plans 
for  their  correction.  The  schools  fall  into  ruts.  All  depends, 
however,  on  the  qualifications  of  the  superintendent.  The  best 
method  of  appointing  a  superintendent  I  leave  for  the  committee  to 
determine. 

8.  A  school  superintendent  should  be  a  Caesar,  a  Solomon,  and 
an  angel,  all  in  one  person  !  Who  can  describe  his  make-up  ?  As 
a  supervisor  of  instruction,  he  should  be  a  scholar  and  an  educator, 
practically  acquainted  with  the  science  and  art  of  teaching.  But  I 
forbear. 

9  I  am  not  competent  to  answer  this  question.  The  experience 
of  the  country,  with  few  exceptions,  is  in  the  direction  of  local  con- 
trol and  management  of  schools  in  cities  and  towns.  I  see  little 
hope  of  changing  this,  even  if  desirable,  except  by  general  statutes 
regulating  local  management. 

10.  The  authority  to  license  teachers  should  be  vested  in  a  board 
or  committee  of  experts,  not  less  than  three  in  number,  and  these 
examiners  of  teachers  should  be  confirmed  and  commissioned,  if 
not  appointed,  by  State  authority.  The  superintendent  may  be  a 
member  of  this  licensing  body,  but,  if  he  has  the  appointment  of 
teachers,  his  relation  to  their  licensure  should  be  advisory.     1  do 


JFORNtA 
ON  ORGANIZATION  OF  CITY   SCHOOLS.  22$ 

not  favor  the  investing  of  the  superintendent  with  the  power  to 
license  and  also  to  appoint  teachers.  If  the  superintendent  has  not 
the  power  of  appointment,  he  should  be  a  member  of  the  board  of 
examiners  or  licensure. 

11.  The  superintendent  should  be  vested  by  law  with  the  power 
to  select  and  appoint  teachers,  and  also  to  assign  them  to  their  posi- 
tions. His  appointments  may  be  subject  to  the  approval  of  the 
board,  under  specified  limitations.  The  power  to  appoint  should 
carry  with  it  the  right  to  discharge  for  cause,  subject  to  the  review 
of  the  proper  court.  The  essential  condition  here  is  that  the  super- 
intendent's power  and  duty  in  these  directions  should  be  clearly 
defined  by  State  law,  not  by  regulations  of  the  school  board.  For  a 
fuller  answer  to  this  question,  I  refer  you  to  the  inclosed  paper  on 
"School  Superintendence  in  Cities." 

12.  Answered  above. 

13.  I  have  not  over-confidence  in  competitive  examinations  as  a 
means  of  determining  promotions  to  school  positions  of  higher  grade 
or  emolument.  Certain  essential  qualifications  cannot  be  disclosed 
by  a  formal  examination,  or  measured  by  a  per-cent.  scale.  An 
examination  is  largely  a  test  of  knowledge,  whereas  success  depends 
as  well  on  ability  and  character. 

14.  In  general  terms,  the  superintendent  should  have  charge  of 
the  schools  as  a  whole,  and  the  principal  should  be  held  responsible 
for  the  efficiency  of  the  schools  under  his  immediate  control.  Prin- 
cipals are  local  superintendents,  acting  under  the  direction  and  over- 
sight of  the  general  superintendent,  and  in  harmony  with  deter- 
mined plans  and  purposes.  I  cannot  undertake  a  complete  statement 
of  the  duties  of  each,  much  less  their  proper  co-ordination. 

15.  The  superintendent,  with  the  assistance  of  associate  superin- 
tendents and  principals.  It  may  be  well  to  provide  for  the  approval 
of  the  course  by  all  supervisors  acting  as  a  body.  Under  present 
conditions  in  most  cities,  the  course  should  be  finally  approved  by 
the  board  of  education. 

16.  The  text-books  should  be  selected  by  those  who  make  the 
course  of  study,  since  they  are  essentially  a  part  of  the  course. 

17.  Promotions  within  the  grades  under  the  direct  supervision  of 
the  principal  should  be  made  by  him.  Promotions /r^w  one  school 
or  group  of  schools  under  a  principal  should  be  made  by  the  super- 
intendent on  the  judgment  of  teachers  and  principals,  properly  ascer- 
tained. I  like,  as  you  know,  the  plan  of  monthly  estimates,  with 
examinations  for  special  cases. 

18.  Complaints  by  parents  should  first  be  made  to  the  principal, 
and  then,  if  desired,  to  the  superintendent.  It  may  be  wise  to  pro- 
vide for  an  appeal  from  the  judgment  of  the  superintendent  in  speci- 
fied cases,  but  his  decision  should,  in  most  cases,  be  final.  When 
unsatisfactory,  it  may  be  well  for  him  to  seek  its  reference  to  a  com- 
mittee composed  of  competent  persons.' 

19.  I  have  no  definite  opinion  on  this  subject. 

I  have  thus  tried  to  comply  with  your  request  by  giving  you 
"  running  "  answers  to  all  the  questions.  I  would  like  to  be  more 
specific  on  the  manner  of  the  superintendent's  appointment.     This, 

15 


226  APPENDIX. 

as  I  see  it,  will  depend  somewhat  on  the  manner  in  which  the  board 
is  organized.  A  school  system  should  have  two  executive  officers, 
one  having  charge  of  what  may  be  called  the  business  department  of 
the  system,  and  the  other  of  the  internal  work  of  the  schools,  the 
instruction  department.  These  should  be  co-ordinate  officers,  and 
neither  should  be  appointed  by  the  other.  If  the  superintendent  of 
instruction  is  appointed  by  the  head  of  the  business  department,  he 
is  thereby  put  in  a  subordinate  position,  and  also  his  department.  It 
so  strikes  me,  but  this  may  be  the  less  of  two  evils  in  a  given  city. 
If  the  board  is  not  to  appoint  the  superintendent,  as  well  as  the  head 
of  the  other  department,  the  selection  and  appointment  of  the 
superintendent  should  be  vested  in  some  outside  authority,  or  he 
should  be  elected  by  the  people. 

The  special  reform  in  school  administration  needed  is  the  differ- 
entiation of  the  department  of  school  supervision  and  its  invest- 
ment with  well-defined  functions  and  powers  by  State  law.  See 
inclosed  paper. 


INDEX 


227-28 


I 


INDEX 


Algebra,  in  elementary  course,  55,  95. 
relation  of,  to  arithmetic,  74. 
Greenwood  on,  102. 
Analysis   and  isolation   should  precede 
synthesis  and  correlation,  85. 
Arithmetic,  abridgment  of.  Greenwood 
on,  loi. 
Maxwell  on,  112. 
alternation  of  mental  and  written,  58. 

Greenwood  on,  102. 
amount  of  time  devoted  to,  56. 
arrangement   of    topics   in.    Green- 
wood on,  102. 
five  years  sufficient  for  study  of,  57. 
psychological  importance  of,  53. 
relation  of,  to  mathematics,  52. 
Biography,  use  of,  introductory  to  his- 
tory, 65. 
use  of  literary,  discouraged,  84. 
Board    of    education,    choice    between 
commissioner    and,    Bardeen 
on,  200. 
Barnes  on,  201. 
Butler  on,  202. 
Carlisle  on,  204. 
Corson  on,  206. 
Eliot  on,  207. 
Gilbert  on,  210. 
Hanus  on,  211. 
Harper  on,  213, 
Hill  on,  214. 
Hinsdale  on,  215. 
Kiehle  on,  217. 
Parker  on,  218. 
Pattengill  on,  219. 
Schurman  on,  221. 
Thwing  on,  222. 
White  on,  223. 
Cleveland  plan  for,  122,  125. 
election  of,  Bardeen  on,  200. 
Carlisle  on,  205. 
Eliot  on,  207. 
Gilbert  on,  210. 
Hanus  on,  211. 
Harper  on,  213. 
Hill  on,  214. 
Hinsdale  on,  216. 
Kiehle  on,  217. 
Parker  on,  218. 
Pattengill  on,  219. 
Schurman  on,  221. 
White  on,  224. 


Board  of  education,  politics  in,  Bardeen 
on,  200. 

Carlisle  on,  205. 

Hanus  on,  211, 

Harper  on,  213. 

Hill  on,  214. 

Hinsdale  on,  216. 

Kiehle  on,  217. 

Parker  on,  218. 

Pattengill  on,  219. 

Schurman  on,  221. 

Thwing  on,  222. 

White  on,  224. 
powers  of,  121. 

Gilbert  on,  210. 

Seaver  on,  131, 
selection  of  members  of,  i  ig.  • 
size  of,  120. 

Bardeen  on,  200. 

Carlisle  on,  205. 

Eliot  on,  207. 

Gilbert  on,  210. 

Hanus  on,  211. 

Harper  on,  213. 

Hill  on,  214. 

Hinsdale  on,  216. 

Parker  on,  218. 

Pattengill  on,  219. 

Schurman  on,  221. 

White  on,  224. 
term  of  member  of,  120. 

Seaver  on,  131. 
Citizenship,  intelligent,  67. 

special  education  in  duties  of,  63. 
Commissioner,  election  of,  Bardeen  on, 
200. 

Barnes  on,  201. 

Carlisle  on,  204. 

Harper  on,  213. 

Hinsdale  on,  215. 

Kiehle  on,  217. 

Parker  on,  218. 

Thwing  on,  222. 
power  and  duty  Of,  Bardeen  on',  200. 

Barnes  on,  201. 

Carlisle  on,  205. 

Harper  on,  213. 

Hinsdale  on,  216. 

Parker  on,  218. 

Thwing  on,  222. 
Committee  of  Fifteen,  appointment  and 
personnel  of,  7,  8. 

229 


230 


INDEX. 


Committee  of  Fifteen,  appropriation  for 
expenses  of,  8. 
correspondence  and  discussion  of,  8. 
meetings  of,  8,  13,  17. 
personnel  of  sub-committees  of,  9. 
propositions  adopted  by,  14-16. 
publication  of  report  of,  3,  17. 
Compulsory  education,  Bardeen  on,  201. 
Butler  on,  203. 
Carlisle  on,  205. 
Corson  on,  207. 
Gilbert  on,  210. 
Hanus  on,  213. 

Harper  on,  214.  , 

Hill  on,  215. 
Hinsdale  on,  217. 
Kiehle  on,  218. 
Parker  on,  219. 
Pattengill  on,  220. 
Schurman  on,  222. 
Thwing  on,  223. 
White  on,  225, 
Content  of  education,  Gilbert  on,  104. 
Correlation,  of  course  of  study  with  pu- 
pil's environment,  41. 
of  results  by  division.  Button,  Grand- 
gent,   Hanus,    Hill,    Huling, 
and  Kelley  on,  178. 
Correlation  of  studies,  by  synthesis,  Gil- 
bert on,  107. 
division    of,      Dutton,     Grandgent, 
Hanus,     Hill,     Huling,    and 
Kelley  on,  178. 
Klemm  on,  185. 
Prince  on,  195. 
effect  of  faulty,  84,  97. 
forms  of,  set  forth  by  Gilbert,  104. 

by  Jones,  no,  iii. 
in  elementary  education,   report  of 

sub-committee  on,  40, 
meaning  of,  40. 

Gregory  on,  170,  171. 
Hanus  on,  146. 
Jones  on,  181. 
purpose  of,  Bryant  on,  163. 

Dutton,  Grandgent,  Hanus,  Hill, 

Huling,  and  Kelley  on,  177. 
McMurry  on,  186. 
Merwin  on,  190. 
Parker  on,  195. 
questions  by  sub-committee  on,  10, 

II,  157,  158. 
relation  of  psychology  to,  42. 
restriction  of,  Jones  on,  in. 
universality  of,  Bryant  on,  i6''3. 

Dutton,  Grandgent,  Hanus,  Hill, 
Huling,  and  Kelley  on,  178. 
Klemm  on,  184. 
Council,  school,  121. 

teachers',  204,  209,  210. 
Course  of  study,  by  whom  made,  Bar- 
deen on,  20I. 
Barnes  on,  202. 


Course  of  study,  by  whom  made,  Butler 
on,  203. 
Carlisle  on,  205. 
Corson  on,  207. 
Gilbert  on,  210. 
Hanus  on,  212. 
Harper  on,  214. 
Hill  on,  214. 
Hinsdale  on,  217, 
Kiehle  on,  218. 
Parker  on,  219. 
Pattengill  on,  220. 
Schurman  on,  222. 
Thwing  on,  223, 
White  on,  225. 
same  for  all  students,  87. 
Discipline,  effect  of  too  much,  49. 
Drawing,  importance  of,  in  elementary 
school  work,  69. 
time  to  be  devoted  to,  70. 
Elementary    course,    brief    description 
of,  67. 
length  of,  Bryant  on,  160. 

Dutton,  Grandgent,  Hanus,  Hill, 

Huling,  and  Kelley  on,  174. 
Gregory  on,  165. 
Jesse  on,  180. 
Klemm  on,  184. 
Merwin  on,  186, 
Mowry  on,  191. 
Parker  on,  194. 
Steams  on,  196. 
Williams  on,  196. 
Elementary  school,  aesthetic  training  in, 

branches  to  be  studied  in,  68. 

disciplinary  work  of,  67. 

help  gained  in,  from  recitations  of 
fellow-pupils,  68. 

manual  training  in,  71. 

mechanical  exercises  in,  68. 

moral  training  in,  72. 

penmanship  in,  92. 

physical  culture  in,.  72. 

schedule  of  lessons  per  week  for,  93. 

study  of    American    Revolution   in, 
66. 
of  Constitution  in,  67. 

vocal  music  in,  71. 
Fractions,   Greenwood  on  teaching  of, 

99,  100. 
Geography,  central  idea  of,  in  elemen- 
tary schools,  60. 

comprehensiveness   of   meaning  of, 

59- 
increasing  call  for  wider  knowledge 

of,  61. 
influence  of  geographical  societies  on 

study  of,  62. 
physical,  76. 

psychological  value  of  study  of,  61. 
sequence    of    topics   for   a   rational 

study  of,  60. 


INDEX. 


231 


Geometry,  Gilbert  on,  107. 

inventional,  75. 
(irammar,  discipline  from  study  of,  48. 
Maxwell  on,  112. 
use  of  paraphrasing  in,  90. 

Maxwell  on,  112. 
use  of  text-book  in,  92. 

Gilbert  on,  108. 
value  of,  in  teaching-  language,  48. 
Grammar-school  course,  rank  of  studies 
in,  Bridgham  on,  159. 
Davis  on,  104. 
Dutton,  Grandgent,  Hanus,  Hill, 

Huling,  and  Kelley  on,  17S. 
Gregory  on,  172. 
Klemm  on,  185. 
Parker  on,  195. 
Grammar-school     studies,     range     of, 
Bryant  on,  162. 
Dutton,  Grandgent,  Hanus,  Hill, 

Huling,  and  Kelley  on,  175. 
Gregory  on,  168,  169. 
Jesse  on,  181. 
Klemm  on,  184. 
Merwin  on,  188. 
Mowry  on,  193. 
Parker  on,  194. 
Prince  on,  195. 
Stearns  on,  196. 
pedagogical    value    of,    Bryant   on, 
160. 
Dutton,  Grandgent,  Hanus,  Hill, 
Huling,  and  Kelley  on,  174. 
Gregory  on,  168. 
Jones  on,  182. 
*  Klemm  on,  184. 
Merwin  on,  186, 
Mowry  on,  192. 
Parker  on,  194. 
History,  broadening  influence  of  study 
of,  26. 
classic  period  of  American,  66. 
examples     of     heroism     in    United 

States,  66. 
general,  in  secondary  course,  81. 
oral  lessons  on,  67. 
modification    of,    by    variations    in 

chronology,  82. 
reflective  powers  exercised  by,  67. 
spiral  course  in,  70. 
teaching  of,  65. 
History  and  geography,  relative   value 

of,  62. 
Hobbes,    importance   attached    to    the 

State  by,  63. 
Home  study,  disadvantages  of,  86. 
Hygiene,  lessons  in,  included  in  natural 

science,  71. 
Instruction,     according    to    length    of 
school  life,  Klemm  on,  185. 
Merwin  on,  191. 
Parker  on,  195. 
Williams  on,  197. 


Instruction,  demands  for  scientific  and 
professional,  123. 
influence  of  civilization  on,  14,  42. 
influence  of  environment  on,  14. 
influence  of  length  of  school  life  on, 
Bryant  on,  163. 
Gregory  on,  173. 
Jones  on,  183. 
Jacotot's  maxim,  96. 
Language,  a  product  of  the  experience 
of  people,  49. 
all  learning  dependent  on,  44. 
development  by,  Gilbert  on,  106. 
every  lesson  an  exercise  in,  91. 
influence   of   art   and   literature   on 

study  of,  48. 
Maxwell  on  study  of  foreign,  113. 
place  of,  in  elementary  school,  46. 
value    of    original    composition    in 
study  of,  90. 
Language  and  thinking,  Jones  on,  iii. 
Latin,    substitution   of,    for    grammar, 

73,  95- 
Literature,  aesthetic  training  by,  48. 
civilizing  influence  of  higher,  47. 
correlation  of,  with   physical  facts, 

Jones  on,  T12. 
ethics  and  aesthetics  in,  50,  51. 
knowledge  of  human  nature  through, 

47. 
selections  for  study  of,  47. 
Manual  training,  amount  of  time  to  be 
devoted  to,  71. 
Gilbert  on,  106. 
Mathematics,  rank  of,  among  studies, 

tendency  of  exclusive  devotion  to,  49. 
Methods  of  teaching,  Bryant  on,  163. 

Parker  on,  195. 
Model  school,  Hanus  on,  148. 
teachers  in,  Barnes  on,  138. 
Bliss  on,  138, 
Boyden  on,  139. 
Hinsdale  on,  150. 
Hyde  on,  152. 
Martin  on,  153. 
Parker  on,  154. 
Model-teacher,  criticism  of,  Barnes  on, 
138. 
Hinsdale  on,  150. 
Parker  on,  155. 
Natural  philosophy.  Christianizing  in- 
fluence of,  78, 
Natural  science,  acquisition  of,   by  re- 
sults, 81. 
in  the  elementary  school,  69. 
suggestions  for  the  teaching  of,  70. 
time  for  oral  lessons  in,  70. 
Objective  teaching  as  a  specialty,  50. 
Oral   lessons,    argument    in    favor    of 
weekly,  71. 
Gilbert's  dissent   from    opinion    of 
committee  on,  108, 


232 


INDEX. 


Organization   of   city   school    systems, 
questions    by   sub-committee 
on,  12,  ig8. 
report  of  sub-committee  on,  114. 
Parent  and  teacher,  disputes  between, 
Barnes  on,  202. 
Butler  on,  203. 
Corson  on,  207. 
Gilbert  on,  210. 
Hanus  on,  212. 
Harper  on,  214. 
Hill  on,  214. 
Hinsdale  on,  217. 
Kiehle  on,  218. 
Parker  on,  219. 
Pattengill  on,  220. 
Schurman  on,  222. 
Thwing  on,  223. 
White  on,  225. 
Physics,  adaptation  of,  to   high-school 

course,  76. 
Physiology,  lessons  in,  to  be  included 

in  natural  science,  71. 
Processes  becoming  mechanical  to  be 

avoided,  57. 
Programme,  assignment  of  time  in,  172. 
Davis  on,  164. 
Dutton,  Grandgent,  Hanus,  Hill, 

Huling,  and  Kelley  on,  178. 
Merwin  on,  190, 
relief  studies  on,  87. 
Promotion,  Bardeen  on,  201. 
Barnes  on,  202. 
Bridgham  on,  160. 
Bryant  on,  163. 
Butler  on,  203. 
Carlisle  on,  205. 
Corson  on,  207. 
Eliot  on,  209. 
Gilbert  on,  210. 
Gregory  on,  173. 
Hanus  on,  212. 
Harper  on,  214. 
Hill  on,  214. 
Hinsdale  on,  217. 
Jones  on,  183. 
Kiehle  on,  218. 
Klemm  on,  186. 
Merwin  on,  191. 
Mowry  on,  194. 
Parker  on,  195,  219. 
Pattengill  on,  220. 
Schurman  on,  222. 
Stearns  on,  ig6. 
Thwing  on,  223. 
White  on,  225. 
Williams  on,  197. 
by    competitive    examination,    Bar- 
deen on,  200. 
Barnes  on,  202. 
Butler  on,  203. 
Carlisle  on,  205. 
Corson  on,  206. 


Promotion,  by  competitive  examination, 
Gilbert  on,  210. 

Hanus  on,  212. 

Harper  on,  213. 

Hill  on,  214. 

Hinsdale  on,  216. 

Kiehle  on,  218. 

Parker  oh,  219, 

Pattengill  on,  220. 

Schurman  on,  222. 

Thwing  on,  223. 

White  on,  225. 
device  for  improvement  in,  98. 
Psychology,  function  of,  in  education, 

.  ^'*'  -5'  42- 
scientific   experiment  in  physiologi- 
cal, 43. 
Pupil-teacher,  criticism  of.  Greenwood 
on,  142. 
Gregory  on,  144. 
Hinsdale  on,  151. 
Holloway  on,  152. 
Parker  on,  155. 
critics  for,  Hinsdale  on,  151. 

Parker  on,  155. 
testing  of,  Hinsdale  on,  151. 
Johnston  on,  156. 
Parker  on,  155. 
Scott  on,  156. 
Reading,  plan  for,  89. 

undesirability  of   use    of,  for  other 
exercises,  84. 
Recitation,  attention  in,  96. 
length  of,  93. 

Bryant  on,  163. 
Bridgham  on,  159. 
Dutton,  Grandgent,  Hanus,  Hill, 
Huling,  and  Kelley  on,  178, 
Gregory  on,  172. 
Klemm  on,  185. 
Mowry  on,  194. 
Parker  on,  195. 
Williams  on,  196, 
studies  for  morning,  86. 
Republic,  true  Roman  meaning  of,  64. 
School  administration,  board  for  legis- 
lative functions  of,  128, 
Lane  on,  132. 
by  committees,  124. 
executive    of    business    department 
of,  128. 
Lane  on,  132. 
executive  of  department  of  instruc- 
tion of,  128. 
legislative  body  for,  118. 
legislative   and    executive    functions 
of,    discrimination    between, 
116,  128,  130. 
rights  of  parents  in,  129. 
School  buildings,  exclusiveness  in  use 
of,  98. 
and  supplies,  care  of,  204,  209. 
School  director,  121. 


INDEX. 


233 


School  director,  Seaver  on,  131. 
School  system,  affected  by  public  senti- 
ment, 114,  117. 
authority  of  the  people  over,  117. 
dissociation  of,  from  politics  or  re- 
ligion, 119,  120,  128. 
distinctive  features  of  good,  98. 
Science,  definition  of,  69. 
educational  value  of,  80. 
method  of  teaching,  79. 

Gilbert  on,  107. 
study  of,  to  be  on  the  line  of  expe- 
rience, 69. 
two  divisions  of  natural,  70. 
Science  and  history  contrasted,  83. 
Secondary   and    elementary    work,   re- 
quirements for,  139,  141. 
Secondary  school,  province  of,  34. 
Self-education,  tendency  of,  78. 
Specialization  of  work,  80,  95. 
Bryant  on,  163. 

Button,    Grandgent,    Hanus,    Hill, 
Huling,  and  Kelley  on,  180. 
Gilbert  on,  89. 
Jones  on,  183. 
Parker  on,  195. 
Williams  on,  197. 
Spelling,  92. 

Greenwood  on,  104. 
Studies,  order  of,  psychological,  74. 

symmetrical  adjustment  of,  40. 
Study,  advanced  and  elementary,  relative 
value  of,  88. 
professional     and     academic,     con- 
trasted, 22. 
vStyle,  how  to  acquire  a  correct,  48,  91. 
Superintendent,    appointment   of,  Bar- 
deen  on,  200. 
Barnes  on,  201. 
Butler  on,  202. 
Carlisle  on,  205. 
Corson  on,  206. 
Gilbert  on,  210. 
Hanus  on,  212. 
Harper  on,  213. 
Hill  on,  214. 
Hinsdale  on,  216. 
Kiehle  on,  217. 
Parker  on,  218. 
Pattengill  on,  220. 
Schurman  on,  221. 
Thwing  on,  222. 
"White  on,  224. 
assistants  for,  126. 
authority  of  State  over,  Bardeen  on, 

200. 
powers  of,  123,  125. 

Seaver  on,  132. 
qualifications  for,  Bardeen  on,  200. 
Barnes  on,  201. 
Butler  on,  203. 
Carlisle  on,  205. 
Corson  on,  206. 


Superintendent,  qualifications  for.   Gil- 
bert on,  210. 

Hanus  on,  212. 

Harper  on,  213. 

Hill  on,  214. 

Hinsdale  on,  2i6. 

Kiehle  on,  217. 

Parker  on,  218. 

Pattengill  on,  220. 

Schurman  on,  221. 

Thwing  on,  222. 

White  on,  224. 
responsibility  of,  to  State  authority, 
Barnes  on,  201. 

Carlisle  on,  205. 

Corson  on,  206. 

Hanus  on,  212. 

Harper  on,  213. 

Hill  on,  214, 

Hinsdale  on,  216. 

Parker  on,  219. 

Pattengill  on,  220. 

Schurman  on,  221. 

Thwing  on,  222. 

White  on,  224. 
term  of  office  of,  125. 

Seaver  on,  132. 
Superintendent    and    teacher,    relative 
duties  of,  Bardeen  on,  200. 
Barnes  on,  202. 
Carlisle  on,  205. 
Corson  on,  206. 
Gilbert  on,  210. 
Hanus  on,  212. 
Harper  on,  214. 
Hill  on,  214. 
Hinsdale  on,  217. 
Parker  on,  219, 
Pattengill  on,  220. 
Schurman  on,  222. 
Thwing  on,  223. 
White  on,  225. 
Teacher,  appointment  and  discharge  of, 
Bardeen  on,  200. 

Butler  on,  203. 

Carlisle  on,  205. 

Corson  on,  206. 

Eliot  on,  208, 

Gilbert  on,  210. 

Hanus  on,  212. 

Harper  on,  213. 

Hill  on,  214. 

Hinsdale  on,  216. 

Kiehle  on,  218. 

Parker  on,  219. 

Pattengill  on,  220. 

Schurman  on,  221. 

Seaver  on,  132. 

Thwing  on,  223. 

White  on,  225. 
child's  need  of  guidance  of,  79, 
grade   assignment   of,  Bardeen   on, 
200. 


234 


INDEX. 


Teacher,  grade  assignment  of,  Barnes 
on,  20I. 

Carlisle  on,  205. 

Corson  on,  206. 

Gilbert  on,  210. 

Hanus  on,  212. 

Harper  on,  213. 

Hill  on,  214. 

Hinsdale  on,  216. 

Kiehle  on,  218. 

Parker  on,  219. 

Pattengill  on,  220. 

Schurman  on,  222. 

Thwing  on,  223. 

White  on,  225. 
graduation  of,  33. 
kinds  of,  in  training  school,  20. 
licensing  of,  Bardeen  on,  200. 

Barnes  on,  201. 

Carlisle  on,  205. 

Corson  on,  206. 

Gilbert  on,  210. 

Hanus  on,  212. 

Harper  on,  213. 

Hil]  on,  214. 

Hinsdale  on,  216. 

Parker  on,  219. 

Pattengill  on,  220. 

Schurman  on,  221. 

Thwing  on,  222. 

White  on,  224. 
minimum  acquirements  for,  19,  20. 
position  of,  on  eligible  list,  126. 
preparation  of  normal-school,  35. 
preparation  of  secondary,  B»one  on, 
140,  141. 

Hanus  on,  145-148. 
status  of,  in  schoolroom,  127. 
tests  of  success  of,  32. 
Teaching,  art  of,  22,  37. 

how  to  secure  progress  in  methods 

of,  46. 
requisite  elements  of,  33. 
science  of,  22,  36. 
Text-books,  selection  of,  Bardeen  on ,  201 . 
Butler  on,  203. 
Carlisle  on,  205. 
Corson  on,  207. 
Eliot  on,  209. 
Gilbert  on,  210. 
Hanus  on,  212. 
Harper  on,  214. 
Hill  on,  214. 
Hinsdale  on,  217. 
Kiehle  on,  218. 
Parker  on,  219. 
Pattengill  on,  220. 
Schurman  on,  222. 
Thwing  on,  223. 
White  on,  225. 
Theory,  Hanus  on  educational,  145,  146. 
Time,  division   of,  for  subjects,  Davis 
on,  164. 


Time,  division  of,  for  subjects,  Dutton, 
Grandgent,  Hanus,  Hill,  Hu- 
ling,  and  Kelley  on,  179. 
Klemm  on,  185. 
for    each    branch,    recommendation 
regarding,  89-95. 
Topics,  division  of,  Davis  on,  165. 
Merwin  on,  191. 
practical  basis  in  choice  of,  41. 
psychological  arrangement  of,  41. 
sequence  of,  40. 
Bryant  on,  162. 
Dutton,  Grandgent,  Hanus,  Hill, 

Huling,  and  Kelley  on,  176. 
Gregory  on,  169. 
Jones  on,  183. 
Merwin  on,  189. 
Parker  on,  195. 
Training  of  teachers,  necessity  and  pro- 
vision for,  149. 
one-sidedness  of  an  abstract  psycho- 
logical, 42. 
questions  by  sub-committee  on,  9,  lo, 

135,  136. 
study  of  school  economy  in,  26,  37. 
Training  school,  age  for  admission  to, 
Gregory  on,  143. 
Hinsdale  on,  149. 
Parker  on,  153. 
apportionment  of  time  in,  23. 
Gault  on,  141- 
Greenwood  on,  142. 
Gregory  on,  143. 
Hinsdale  on,  150, 
Holloway  on,  152. 
Parker  on,  154. 
diploma  of,  Hinsdale  en,  151, 

Parker  on,  155. 
examination  for,  Hinsdale  on,  150. 
Hyde  on,  152. 
Parker  on,  154. 
history  of  education  in,  27. 
Barnes  on,  137. 
Bliss  on,  138. 
Gregory  on,  144. 
Hanus  on,  146. 
Hinsdale  on,  150. 
Murdock  on,  153. 
Parker  on,  154. 
how  conducted,  27-30. 
length  of  course  in,  30-32. 
Hinsdale  on,  150. 
Holloway  on,  152. 
Parker  on,  154. 
measurement  of  child  in,  Barnes  on, 

137. 
mode  of  training  in,  Barnes  on,  137. 
Bliss  on,  138. 
Boyden  on,  139. 
Gault  on,  142. 
Greenwood  on,  142. 
Hanus  on,  148, 
Hinsdale  on,  150. 


I 


INDEX. 


235 


Training  school,  mode  of  training  in, 
Johnston  on,  155. 

Scott  on,  155. 
observation  of  child  in,  24. 

Barnes  on,  137. 

Greenwood  on,  142. 

Hinsdale  on,  150. 

Hollo  way  on,  152. 

Johnston  on,  155. 

Martin  on,  153. 

Parker  on,  154. 

Scott  on,  155. 
post-graduate  year  in,  38. 
principles  of  education  in,  Gault  on, 
141. 

Hinsdale  on,  150. 

Johnston  on,  155. 

Parker  on,  154. 

Scott  on,  155. 
psychology  in,  23,  24. 

Bliss  on,  138. 

Greenwood  on,  142. 

Gregory  on,  144. 

Hanus  on,  145. 

Hinsdale  on,  150. 


Hyde 


Training  school,  psychology  in, 
on,  152. 
Murdock  on,  153. 
Parker  on,  154. 
scholarship    requirements  for,  Bliss 
on,  138. 
Hanus  on,  144,  145. 
Hinsdale  on,  150. 
Johnston  on,  155. 
Parker  on,  153. 
Scott  on,  155. 
school  economy  in,  26. 
scope    of    work    in,    Hinsdale   on, 
151. 
Parker  on,  155. 
studies  in,  21. 
United   States   Constitution,    study  of, 

66,  67. 
Unity  of  knowledge  not  outside  a  child's 

capacity,  Gilbert  on,  105. 
Vocabulary,  familiarity  with  a  colloquial, 

46. 
Words,  internal  side  of,  46. 

rise  of,  through  actual  experience,  45. 
Words  and  idea&»  relation  between,  45. 

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